Does the Camp Industry Need a Union? - with Alana Matteson - CampHacker #150

How might (or might not) a union help serve Camp Pros as they navigate an increasingly stressful profession?

At the end of August, a particularly thought-provoking post was made in the Summer Camp Professionals Facebook group.

After hearing about some of the horror stories of this, and past summers, a pro posted this:

“…Its become clear to me in the last few months that the people in charge of camps are often not the people that run summer camps and this can lead to some wild expectations including around hours, pay, vacation time, parental leave, etc. because the ACA hasn’t put these things in the standards, I’m wondering if having some sort of body to educate people on best practices around expectations for staff would be helpful.”

That pro, was Alana Matteson, and she is our guest this episode to kick off our
new season of both Camp Code and the CampHacker Podcast!

Alana joins Travis and Ruby for this discussion on not just Unions, but the type of advocacy that pros need in general to have more successful, fulfilling and sustainable careers.

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What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Tool of the Week – Make Yourself a Better Camp Director

Travis: WorkSharp

Ruby: Personal Recipe Book

Alana: Power Beats High-Performance Earbuds

Your Hosts:

Thanks to our sponsor!

UltraCamp

Wouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at summercampsoftware.com/camphacker

Why We Volunteer - with Matt Honsberger - CampHacker #149

Over 16 hours of volunteer podcasting this year. Why do we do it? How can we encourage the next generation of camp pros to give back to the industry…

There are SO many people that love and support the industry. From Podcast hosts, to speakers, to bloggers, to association volunteers, to contributors in the online communities, there are tens of thousands of volunteer hours poured into the industry every year.

This episode is dedicated to the spirit of volunteering at camp, and how we can encourage the next generation of camp professionals to step up and support the industry as it enters this chapter of recovery and change.

Chris, Joe and Travis are joined by Go Camp Pro’s Executive Producer, Matt Honsberger (who’s currently typing this blog!) to look back on this season of the CampHacker Podcast and share where the inspiration to give time comes from, and how to help others find it as well.

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How are you encouraging staff to volunteer? Let us know in the comments!

Your Hosts:

Thanks to our sponsor!

UltraCamp

Wouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at summercampsoftware.com/camphacker

Staff Recruitment for Next Summer Begins NOW - CampHacker #148

Was staffing a pain for you this year? Let’s get ahead of this beast for next summer!

The global pandemic has hit our industry hard in so many ways, but one of them that we didn’t really expect was how hesitant our youth and young adults who have traditionally served every summer at camp would be about joining us for another season.

And whether that was because they were a bit more risk-averse, or maybe they’ve just seen the financial benefits more desirable. Either way, what we need to take away from this is just how intentional we need to be about recruiting staff.

What better time to start than when you have staff at camp NOW?

Chris, Gabz, and Travis are joined by returning guest Neva Baltzell to share how thinking about recruitment now will not just benefit next year, but will have a profound impact on your current staff team.

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How will you start your staff recruitment now? Let us know in the comments!

Tool of the Week – Make Yourself a Better Camp Director

Travis: BarKeeper’s Friend - https://amzn.to/3hpCewA

Neva: UNO Flip, Monopoly Deal, Monopoly Bid

Gabz: Notion

Chris: Black Boys Documentary

Your Hosts:

Thanks to our sponsor!

UltraCamp

Wouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at summercampsoftware.com/camphacker

Summer Self-Care for Camp Directors - with Kate Taylor - CampHacker #147

Boundaries, sleep, and exercise - tools for camp pros that are just as important as duct tape and zip ties.

This isn’t some fluffy episode where we tell you to take up meditation and manifest your stress away. Self-care for Camp Directors seems like an oxymoron most days. To accomplish any sort of balance in our camp lives, we need to put just as much intention into our self-care habits as we put into everything else we do at camp.

A camp director will best serve the staff they work with, when their needs are well met. Period. Full stop.

Chris, Gabz, and Travis are joined by Kate Taylor for a very frank and realistic perspective on what it means to prioritize self-care, even when it seems impossible.

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What do you do to be your best self when camp is at it’s busiest? Let us know in the comments!

Tool of the Week – Make Yourself a Better Camp Director

Travis: Gerber Gear Armbar Slim Drive https://amzn.to/2R2bjMl

Kate: daylio.net

Gabz: OAAARS

Chris: https://numberforliveperson.com/

Thanks to our sponsor!

UltraCamp

Wouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at summercampsoftware.com/camphacker