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by Ray Bivens
Through my travels, I encounter many nature-themed camps. They
have names such as "Young Explorers," "Nature Nuts," and "Outdoor
Adventurers." Sadly, I discover that nine times out of ten, these
camps have no naturalist or professional outdoor educator on staff. No
camp director would theme a camp around sailing without a trained sailing
instructor, so why should nature camps be any different?
As a former
program director myself, I realize what program directors face every
day. It can seem like a hundred urgent matters occur each day, often
at the same time. If you do not spend your week putting out one small
brush fire after another, please give me a call; I want to know your
secret. Unfortunately, environmental education at camp is often something
that is easy to put on the back burner on your "things to do list" that
you create each morning. Environmental education never seems to get the
attention it deserves when you are dealing with a plumbing problem, preparing
for the staff meeting, and trying to balance the budget.
You can give
your environmental education program a face-lift. The first thing to
do is to make a commitment to creating a properly staffed program by
hiring a camp naturalist or outdoor educator. Develop a written job description,
and advertise the position using "camp naturalist" or "outdoor
educator" as the job title. If you advertise for a horseback riding
instructor, you do not get lifeguards applying; the same rule applies
here. Why should a naturalist apply to a camp that is only looking for
camp counselors?
Finding Your Naturalist
Let's start with what
not to look for in a camp naturalist or interpreter.
- You are not necessarily
looking for an ornithologist. Just because he or she knows the mating
call of the chestnut-sided warbler by heart does not mean he or she
understands camp and campers. You need someone who can be part entertainer,
part educator, and part famous TV naturalist Marty Stauffer, all in
one.
- You are not looking for someone to run a nature center. It
takes too much time and money to bring a nature center to life—leave that
job to the pros at local parks and nonprofit groups like the National
Audubon Society. You need someone who can make your camp property his
or her living classroom.
- You are not looking for Freeman Tilden (aka:
The Father of Interpretation). With the salary you are able to offer,
you will not attract the world's elite naturalists. However,
do not be afraid to emphasize the positives of your position: time
off, free meals, free lodging, and a great chance to save money.
The Interview Process
Many camp directors would not know a fish hawk
from an eagle but certainly want a naturalist who does. One easy, nonintimidating
way to discover what a candidate knows is to give a short quiz. Visit
www.enature.com, use downloaded photos of local trees and animals to
create your own quiz, and then see how prospective camp naturalists score.
As part of the interview process, consider asking each applicant to
come prepared with a ten-minute program to present. This technique is
common in the field. Chances are that if you enjoy their teaching style,
so will your campers. A warning concerning this practice: it can make
phone interviews very difficult, but the good naturalists will still
shine through.
Empowering Your Staff Member
Your outdoor education program
is one that needs your support not only fiscally but also emotionally—and
with your own sweat equity. Traditionally, naturalist positions attract
individuals with personalities that thrive on daily feedback, and they
are committed to their work so that they can share their love of the
outdoors, not just receive a paycheck. Failing to set aside time to regularly
attend programs or check in on a daily basis, will certainly alienate
a camp naturalist much quicker than most other staff members. Traditionally,
camp managers stay "out of the hair" of staff members who
are doing a good job and watch from a distance. This is not a good management
approach when working with an educator.
What Focus Will Your Environmental Education Program Take?
Try not to
dictate to your camp naturalist specifically what subject matters he
or she should teach—the educator needs some latitude for creativity.
In addition, if your naturalist comes with a specialty in Herps (Reptiles
and Amphibians), the last thing you want to do is force them to conduct
lessons about marine biology all summer.
Ask for a written lesson plan
in advance and provide input and ideas to help enrich the programs. Having
a written lesson plan one week in advance allows the naturalist time
to be creative but keeps him/her from procrastinating and using the "fly
by the seat of my pants" planning method.
Retention of Good Staff
Turnover in the interpretive field is much higher than in traditional
camp positions. Great camp directors will find a way to do the little
things that make it easy for good staff to return. Here are a few ideas:
- If
a good staff member returns for a second season, offer to pay their
way to an advanced training opportunity or conference. Leave No Trace
Master Trainer workshops, Audubon workshops, or National Association
of Interpretation workshops or conferences are all good choices. You
might never see a dime of return on this investment, but it is certainly
a risk worth taking. You could call it inducement, but most definitely,
you could call it a good investment.
- Instead of a pay raise, which you probably didn't
budget for last winter, consider paying membership fees to a professional
organization for your educator. If your educator is a full-time student
and works at camp during the summer, he will be eligible for big discounts
with many memberships, starting at twenty dollars.
Finding Your Camp's
Niche in Environmental Education
A variety of warbler species all feed
from the same tree, yet none directly competes with others for food.
Some only eat high in the branches while others only eat insects and
not fruit and seeds. Much like the warblers' selective feeding
niches, your camp's environmental education program should have
its own niche.
What Do You Want to Be Known For?
It may be that you are
thinking of developing a traveling high adventure camp with rappelling,
windsurfing, and whitewater rafting for teens. But something as simple
as an introduction to fishing camp, while not nearly as sexy as rock
climbing, may be the right niche that is currently underserved and would
be a good fit for your camp and available resources.
There are many simple
ideas that you and your camp naturalist can implement to help turn your
camp into an environmental education experience. Since finances and the
bottom line are always well . . . the bottom line, I suggest you start
by maximizing your on-site assets. For example, most camps have canoes
and kayaks for recreational purposes, but few use their homegrown assets
to offer naturalist-guided canoe trips. Better yet, why not use your
boats for a full moon canoe paddle for a select group of older, more
mature campers? It may become a tradition that keeps campers coming back
for years until it is their turn to participate.
Another simple project
for your camp naturalist before camp starts could be to identify all
the species of trees around your cabins. Before you know it, you have
your own camp arboretum and some simple scavenger hunt ideas. Always
encourage your camp naturalist to select activities that are fun, and
get campers to touch, feel, and do! Your program cannot be school or
remind campers of school. Be careful of lectures, movies, and PowerPoint
presentations— those tools have their place on rainy days, but
when the weather cooperates, get the campers outside and moving. Help
fight the youth epidemic known as "America's Nature-Deficit
Disorder."
Do Not Be Afraid to Look Outside Your Camp Gates
In
the off-season, get to know your local park and museum staff to see what
they may have to offer. Many camps plan field trips to amusement parks
paying $25-$30 per camper. For a camp of one hundred, $3,000 doesn't
last long, plus amusement parks are tough places to manage a large group
of campers. Kids do not come to camp to go to amusement parks. Leave
those trips for families, and look for cheaper alternatives while not
sacrificing on the fun factor.
For the past four years, I have worked
with Delaware State Parks. One of our gems is Fort Delaware State Park.
The Fort, a former Civil War prison, is one of the largest fortifications
of its time. Today the Fort is interpreted using the first-person living
history format similar to what you find in Williamsburg. At the Fort,
it is 1864 everyday. For a six-dollar fee, campers can take a ferryboat
ride on the Delaware River, see the second-largest Civil War cannon ever
fired, and learn how to cook and clean Civil War-style. In addition,
campers can see the largest heron rookery outside of Florida, with thousands
of herons, ibis, and egrets flying by all day. All this for only $6.
Yet, last year fewer than ten camps visited the Fort all summer.
The
important lesson here is to find your own Fort Delaware. No matter where
your camp is located, there are local treasures to be found. By finding
your jewel of a site, you just saved $2,500 for your camp and think of
all the great photo opportunities you have generated for next year's
camp brochure.
Supplemental Programming
Supplemental programming is one
area where you have to be extra fussy. If your camp has a line item in
the budget for special programs, good for you; you are probably in the
minority. You can go broke in a hurry paying outside companies to provide
entertainment or programs on site for your campers. I encourage you to
keep half of the programs you currently do each year that produce the
best results and look to retool the other half. Here are some inexpensive
or free program ideas you may not have tried; some may only require a
donation.
- Contact your local Fish and Wildlife or Natural Resources
police. Many have search and rescue officers with dogs that provide
very interesting special programs.
- Invite the local forest ranger,
fire company, or Smokey the Bear to your camp.
- Find a local falconer
willing to bring birds and present a flying demonstration at your camp.
- Look
for Civil War reenactors who may live in your area and ask them to
share a short program and possibly a musketry demonstration.
- Contact
your local forests, parks, and museums to see if they conduct outreach
programs.
Take Chances
Probably the best advice I can give you is to
be willing to take chances. If your camp naturalist approaches you and
requests $2,000 to start up a camp digital photography program focused
on nature appreciation, don't just say, "No, we can't
afford it." Explore every option, take it to your next board meeting;
this may be a great donor-supported project. Maybe approach your local
electronics store. At the minimum, you may be able to get a 15%-20% discount,
or they might just sell the cameras at cost in exchange for a small ad
in your next camp brochure.
We all know that where there is a will there
is a way. Sometimes it just may take a little while until that way appears.
You will look like a superstar camp director when you find a way to support
the photography program, and next year you can save money on a professional
photographer because every photo in your marketing materials were camper
snapshots!
Originally published in the 2007 November/December
issue of Camping Magazine. |
