Summer camp is fun. This has been known for generations. However, initial findings of a national study on the summer camp experience are proving that fun is only one of many positive outcomes of the camp experience.
Wilderness Adventures of Jackson was one of approximately 50 programs from across the country that participated in the American Camp Association commissioned study. Early results of the five-year study conducted by a research team from the University of Utah concluded: “camp is an integral part of a young person’s overall learning alongside school and other educational contexts”.
Tom Holland, who owns Wilderness Adventures with his wife Catherine, said “this study reinforces what I have known since I was a first-time camper at Wilderness Adventures in 1996 and now we see with virtually every camper that comes through our program: the camp experience is vitally important to the overall growth and development of a child.”
The first two phases of their multi-year research effort focused attention on camp alumni between the ages of 18-25, and researchers sought to understand how the life experiences of those camp alumni had been impacted by their time at camp. Additionally, researchers sought to understand what made summer camp a unique learning environment for them in their formative years.
The results reiterated findings well known in educational circles. Camp professionals have long understood the summer camp experience fosters critical relationship skills such as how to work as a team and develop positive peer relationships for all participants. However, the research indicated a new outcome that should resonate with all parents who care about the social and emotional education of their children. The study clearly shows that these skills stick with the participants through time, and camp alumni call upon these skills learned at camp to navigate through adulthood.
Founded in 1973, Wilderness Adventures offers overnight travel camps around the globe. In 2017, they founded Base Camp, a local day camp in Jackson. The camp is one of only two Wyoming-based summer camps accredited by the American Camp Association. Wilderness Adventures has been and continues to be an active participant in the ongoing ACA/University of Utah study.
