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It sounds almost impossible to have a
group of eight people that can think broadly
and specifically enough to deal with the
scope of issues involved in developing
and maintaining an accreditation program
for U.S. camps:
- In settings from the Northwoods of
Minnesota to the Caribbean waters of
the Florida Keys to an urban park in
New York City to a college campus in
Los Angeles.
- Offering activities from kosher cooking
to extreme sports to circus training
to scuba diving.
- In sync with laws and regulations and
licenses and certifications of all kinds
and that change constantly.
- Assuring a high level of consistency
across the country through a cadre of
trained volunteers.
The NSC is a team of "ordinary" camp
professionals with the extraordinary commitment
and perspective to address these challenges.
Together they represent private and public,
for-profit and nonprofit camps; mountains
and waterfront and forested settings across
the country; agencies and businesses related
to camps; personal expertise in a wide
range of camp activities; and an openness
to learning whatever it takes to maintain
a quality accreditation program for this
increasingly diverse industry.
Additionally, they share their personal
leadership gifts for team building, for
provoking "out-of-the-box" thinking,
for defining the details of a proposed
standard, for anticipating the implications
of an action to the larger organization,
and most importantly, for how the standards
will improve the camp experience for the
camper and the camp.
ACA's National Standards Commission (NSC)
met in September in Indianapolis to review
the summer of 2008 and to continue to look
toward the future. Part of the three-day
meeting involved ACA staff from different "Teams" (Education,
Field Services, and Public Policy) as well
as Art Wannlund, Volunteer Chair of the
Education and Accreditation Task Force.
This gave the NSC members direct access
to ACA staff and key volunteers that are
involved in professional development,
connection to the Sections and visioning.
These are large ACA areas of interest that
are influenced by and have direct influence
on standards and accreditation. Much
of the time at this meeting was spent in
critical discussion regarding the current
standards as we continue to review them
for applicability, relevance, and timeliness.
The Commission also provided input to the
Accreditation and Education Task Force.
Be watching for more information from this
Task Force!
Meet this dedicated
group . . . .
- Nancy Garran, Massachusetts – Owner/executive
director of private day and resident
camps
- Linda Kotowski, Colorado – Recreation
administrator for Aurora, CO Recreation
Services
- Stan White, California – Executive
director of a multi-site private
nonprofit Christian ministry
- Ron Springs, North Carolina – Camp
director for denominationally sponsored
boys and girls summer camps
- Tom Riddleberger, New Jersey – Director
of private resident sleep-away
camps
- Bev McEntarfer, New York/New
Jersey — Volunteer for international
private nonprofit camp, camp director
for nonprofit group helping make
camp possible for the "underserved
populations"
- David Sherry, Iowa – Director
of YMCA Camp
- Kathy Trotter (Chair), Arkansas – former
director of denominational camps;
national consultant to camps, conference
centers, and retreat centers
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