At the beginning of the new year, many parents begin to make plans for how their children will spend their summer. Camp fairs start cropping up in January and February, and parents send applications for their prospective campers.
For families who have children with disabilities, though, they have even more to be concerned with than just the activities offered by different summer camps or whether they have a pool.
J Camps at the JCC of Greater Baltimore is one of very few Jewish day camps in the area that offers a program specially designed for children with disabilities. Its inclusion program has already filled up for the summer of 2024, and camp counselors and staff are already looking ahead at how they can best make campers with disabilities feel included once the summer begins.
Like its name suggests, the goal of J Camps’ inclusion program is to ensure that children with disabilities are properly integrated into summer camp activities with peers in their respective age group, rather than sectioned off into a separate group with other children with disabilities like they might be at school. Each year, up to 45 children with special needs are paired with a “camper advocate” — a specially trained counselor or staff member who is equipped to meet their specific needs.
“So alongside all of their bunkmates, they’ll go to athletics, swimming, arts and crafts, nature and all of our other great activities,” said Emily Stern, chief program officer at the JCC of Greater Baltimore. “But they’ll have someone with them to make sure they’re meeting their needs and that they are successful in their program along with all their peers.”
Stern first started working at the JCC of Greater Baltimore at 13 as a volunteer. She has served as the senior director of J Camps for the past six-and-a-half years, and has seen the camp grow and change over that time. But the inclusivity program predates even Stern, as she estimates that it was first implemented over 20 years ago. The program has remained very popular since it began, often resulting in a greater need than they have resources to meet.
In order to make sure that campers with disabilities are included in regular activities, the activities are constructed from the ground up with inclusivity and accessibility in mind. Creating activities that are meant to be accessible for all means that there is less of a need for accommodations, while still meeting the needs of campers with disabilities.
Many of the counselors selected to serve as camper advocates have a background in special needs education, such as teachers who are special educators during the school year. J Camps also holds training sessions before camp starts to familiarize camper advocates with their practices.
“They’ll be a part of their staff group just like any other counselor, but their focus is going to be on the camper they’re working with,” Stern said. “The goals of each of those campers are going to be different, because they all have different needs. Our Director of Inclusion [Helene Rapaport] works with families before camp starts to gather information to help us understand their child’s needs — an IEP (Individualized Education Program) would be the best comparison.”
Ultimately, the goal of J Camps’ inclusion program is to ensure that campers with disabilities can participate in all aspects of camp life without feeling othered or like they are not part of the group.
“It’s important to think about how to not make a child feel excluded. When I talk about universal design, you have to consider how you can make activities in a way where everyone can participate, instead of children with disabilities having to participate differently or skip out on certain parts,” Stern said. “Yes, you are accommodating them if you do that, but it might not necessarily make them feel included. … That’s why the inclusivity program is a really special program at the JCC, and we want to be able to continue it for years to come.”
