Source: eJewish Philanthropy
Building on the success of its previous two Incubators, the Foundation for Jewish Camp (FJC) has announced support of five new specialty camps as part of Incubator III. The new camps will open their doors for the summer of 2018.
Since 2010, the nine Specialty Camps incubated have served over 6,000 campers – with nearly half reporting that they had never attended a Jewish camp before. The camps continue to surpass enrollment and retention goals, proving the demand for Jewish specialty options in the summer camp marketplace. FJC expects that each of these new specialty camps will serve approximately 300 campers and 40 college-aged counselors per summer with a cumulative potential of serving 1,500 campers and 200 college-aged counselors by the summer of 2021.
The camps selected for Specialty Camps Incubator III are:
- JRF Arts in Southern California, will provide campers with high level arts programming within a Jewish, values-based, and magical community to become better artists – and better people.
- Moshav Eden, on the West Coast, will cultivate a diverse Jewishly-rooted community of children, teens, and young adults who learn to steward the earth and strengthen our food systems.
- Ramah Sports Academy will be a high-level sports specialty overnight camp in the Northeast, emphasizing skill development, within a caring summer community infused with the traditions and values of Judaism.
- Sababa Beach Away will inspire a diverse group of Jewish campers of varying ages, levels of Jewish affiliation and all types of observance to experience a relaxing, noncompetitive and fun environment while building relationships, self-¬knowledge, balance, and critical life skills through the exhilaration of ocean activities and the wisdom of Jewish spirituality.
- URJ 6 Points Creative Arts Academy will be a unique environment fully dedicated to the pursuit of visual, performance and media art, building an immersive experience where creative expression permeates every aspect of their day – from meals, to cabin time, to Jewish learning.
Research from the first two Incubators show that the specialty model attracts new campers – 66% said that they only went to Jewish camp because they were attracted to one of the specialties. Additionally, 74% of campers’ parents reported that the experience positively impacted their Jewish identity and 65% testified to positive changes in campers’ Jewish knowledge, further aligning the successes of this program with the missions of all three foundations.
Read more at eJewish Philanthropy.