Leadership Camp (New Jersey)

What is the Leadership Camp?

The Leadership Camp is an action-packed, one-week overnight summer camp for entering 6th – 8th grade boys. Drawing upon decades of experience, the camp aims to help boys develop the skills and virtues necessary to be a leader.

The Program

Each boy is placed on a team with about 10 other campers with whom he shares a cabin, attends activities, and competes for prizes. Every morning campers attend a talk on a specific virtue, as well as classes on topics such as journalism, nature studies, great Americans, or military history. In the afternoons, boys compete in football, basketball, soccer, and dodgeball, followed by a refreshing swim. Other activities such as canoeing, archery, and zip lining are offered on different days. In the evenings, there are night-games such as Fox Hunt and Capture the Flag, not to mention a Treasure Hunt and Talent Show. Spiritual activities, such as daily Holy Mass, the Rosary, catechism class, and confession, are also offered.

Throughout the week, the counselors of each team help the boys to apply principles of leadership and lessons from the virtue talks to concrete situations during the camp. Most importantly, the staff speak individually with each camper to help him grow in self-knowledge and to formulate resolutions for growing in character after the camp.

The Staff

The staff members of the Leadership Camp have been carefully selected and trained to be outstanding role models. They share the ideals of the camp and are dedicated to the personal growth of each camper. Many of them are former campers themselves.  The head staff are adult men who have experience running YSI programs and other character-building activities for young people.  The counselors for each team consist in college and high school students who are chosen for their maturity and experience.  The camper-staff ratio is 3 to 1.

For more information

If you have any questions, please email leadershipcamp@ysi.org or call 315-333-CAMP (315-333-2267).

Dates

Sunday, June 25 – Saturday, July 1, 2017

On Sunday, June 25, campers should arrive at the camp between 3:30 – 4:30 pm.  Sign-in and drop-off will not be available until 3:30 pm.

On Saturday, July 1, we will have a Mass for the campers and their families at 11 am.  Campers should depart from the camp after Mass.

Classes

Campers normally take 3 classes at the camp.  Typical offerings are Journalism (for the camp newsletter), History, Public Speaking, and Catechism.  The classes try to spark a love for learning by getting the students actively engaged in the material and by covering special topics that boys find exciting.

Cost & Payment

Early bird: $580.  Early bird deadline to register  and pay deposit: January 15, 2017.

Regular cost: $660.  Final deadline to register and pay deposit: March 15, 2017.

A deposit of $100 is due at the time of registration. This deposit will apply toward the cost of the camp.

Payments should be made online by clicking on the “Payment” tab above.

Full payment is due by May 1, 2017.

Locationlcnj2016-04

Leadership Camp location

YMCA Camp Linwood MacDonald
1 Flatbrook Road
Sandyston, NJ 07826

Leadership Camp office during the year

YSI Leadership Camp
139 E. 34th St.
New York, NY 10016

 

Directions

Click here to go to the camp location on Google Maps in a new window.

 

Transportation

Parents should make transportation plans for their son to go to and from the Leadership Camp.  Campers should arrive at the camp on Sunday June 25, 2017 between 3:00 – 4:30 pm.  They should depart from the camp on Saturday July 1, 2015 between 10:30 – 11:30 am.

In order to facilitate families’ transportation plans, we help to connect parents who are interested in carpooling with other parents in their area.  On the camper registration form, you will have an opportunity to mark whether or not you would like your contact info (city, state, home phone number) to be shared and whether you would like to receive that of others.  For those who mark yes, we will send you this contact information starting about a month before the camp.

 

Registration Information

Click here for the 2017 Camper Registration Form.

A brief phone interview is required for any family who has not had a son attend the Leadership Camp before.  A staff member will call you within two weeks of your submitting the registration form.

Please send a $100 deposit at the time of registration.  Payments should be made online by clicking on the “Payment” tab above.  Registrations will not be considered complete until the deposit is received.

Space is limited: first-come, first-served.

For more information

If you have any questions, please email leadershipcamp@ysi.org or call 315-333-CAMP (315-333-2267).

Being a Counselor at the Leadership Camp

The Leadership Camp is an action-packed, one-week overnight summer camp for entering 6th – 8th grade boys. Drawing upon decades of experience, the camp aims to help boys develop the skills and virtues necessary to be a leader. In order to achieve this goal, the staff is crucial. The Leadership Camp is looking for counselors who stand out for their maturity, work ethic, spirit of service, and desire to grow in personal character.

Counselors spend a week in the summer serving a group of campers. The Leadership Camp rests on the idea that one cannot give what one does not have. Therefore, both during the preparatory workshop and the camp itself, counselors receive training in their job and advice and encouragement about how to develop their own character. Additionally, spiritual activities – such as daily Holy Mass, the Rosary, and times of prayer – are offered for those interested.

Becoming a staff member is a selective process. Those interested in applying should send in the application and additional materials, which are explained below.

Transportation for Counselors

The Leadership Camp helps coordinate and provide transportation for counselors to the camp from New York, Pittsburgh, and Washington D.C.

Positions Available

  • Senior Counselors: Responsible for a team of about 10 campers and 2 junior counselors. Must be entering college or in college.
  • Junior Counselors: Assistant to a Senior Counselor on a team of about 10 campers. Must be entering high school junior or senior.
  • Logistics Staff (“Mariachi”): Responsible for all logistics and material set-up during the camp. Must be entering high school junior or senior, or in college.

Dates

June 22 – July 1, 2017

  • The first days, June 22-24, consist in a mandatory preparatory workshop, held at the campground.
  • The camp itself runs from June 25 – July 1.
  • Counselors will need to stay at the campground a few hours later than campers in order to clean up from the camp.  Departure will be at 4 pm on July 1.
  • Thus, all staff should plan on being at the camp from June 22 – July 1.

Cost

None, except that all staff must pay $20 for gas and should pay for their lunch while traveling to and from the camp.

Application information

Click here for the 2017 Counselor Application.  The application form includes two short-answer essays.

Please fill out and send the background check authorization form (download here) at the time of application.  Applications will not be considered complete until this form is received.  Scan and email this form to leadershipcamp@ysi.org, or mail it to: YSI Leadership Camp, 139 E. 34th St., New York, NY 10016.

Applications received by March 25, 2017 will be given priority. Notification of acceptances will be mailed out by April 1, 2017.

For More Information

If you have any questions, please email leadershipcamp@ysi.org or call 315-333-CAMP (315-333-2267).

Guidelines & Packing List

Click here to download the Guidelines and Packing List

Photos from Camp

Testing

The Leadership Camp is an action-packed, one-week overnight summer camp for entering 6th – 8th grade boys. Drawing upon decades of experience, the camp aims to help boys develop the skills and virtues necessary to be a leader. In order to achieve this goal, the staff is crucial. The Leadership Camp is looking for counselors who stand out for their maturity, work ethic, spirit of service, and desire to grow in personal character.

Counselors spend a week in the summer serving a group of campers. The Leadership Camp rests on the idea that one cannot give what one does not have. Therefore, both during the preparatory workshop and the camp itself, counselors receive training in their job and advice and encouragement about how to develop their own character. Additionally, spiritual activities – such as daily Holy Mass, the Rosary, and times of prayer – are offered for those interested.

Becoming a staff member is a selective process. Those interested in applying should send in the application and additional materials, which are explained below.