Spotlight: CAS Summer Camps

The 老澳门六合彩开奖记录 College of Arts and Sciences hosted summer camps for the first time in June 2023. Over the course of three weeks, the College offered five summer camps to 95 participants. The five camps were hosted by several of the CAS departments, and included: 

  • UCreate@老澳门六合彩开奖记录: JPC Media Creator Camp
    • Campers collected footage, gathered audio, B-roll, collaborated with one another and integrated all of these into overall video projects and then presented them to the camper鈥檚 families.
  • H20 Species Spies: Biology camp on Stream Ecology
    • Campers collected water samples to cultivate microbes from, and learned lab procedures and how to prepare specimens to view with a microscope.
  • Navigators: Think Fast, Think Fun, Think Orienteering: Orienteering Camp
    • Campers learned map reading skills, used grid mazes, learned how to orient a map using a compass and played cooperative games, completed training exercises and daily navigation courses and became excellent navigators.
  • Games, Puzzles, and Math: Mathematics Camp
    • Campers solved puzzles, looked for patterns, and tinkered with problems using hand-on exploratory activities. Campers learned about encryption and decryption schemes, then worked together to solve coded messages.
  • Bone Detectives: Forensic Anthropology camp.
    • Campers collected plastic human skeletal remains and personal items from a field setting. Via hands-on lab activities, students analyzed blood spatter, different hairs and fibers, and shoe impressions to interpret the data. 
JPC Summer Camp
Orienteering Camp photo
Anthropology Camp photo
 

During these camps, students in grades 5-8 had the opportunity to dive into interactive and fun activities that highlighted each profession. 

Each of our summer camps was spearheaded and led by a member of the College鈥檚 faculty. These faculty members did not act alone! Our outstanding CAS students were hired as camp counselors, and worked directly with the camp participants. Additionally, due to the generosity of the UA Foundation, we were able to offer tuition discounts and scholarships for families to attend the camps. As we continue to expand our Summer Camp efforts, we are hopeful that we will be able to provide scholarships and additional financial assistance so that any family across Anchorage can participate in our camps.  

The feedback from the families that participated in this year鈥檚 camps was overwhelmingly positive. One parent said that their child 鈥渆njoyed all the learning and investigating outside. The staff were helpful and friendly. It was a great camp.鈥� Another commented that their child 鈥渓iked being on a college campus and in a 鈥渞eal鈥� lab. They also enjoyed being outside, including the field trips to Goose Lake and Chester Creek.鈥� A few parents were already looking to the future to enroll their child into camp next year, and said, "We would like to see more camps, including photography and more science, e.g. camps that spur kids鈥� interests and kick off hobbies and early career interests.鈥�
 

Math camp photo

Biology Summer Camp
 

Visit the CAS Summer Camp website for more information about last year鈥檚 camps, and stay tuned for next year鈥檚 schedule. We are hoping to continue the previous camps, and to expand our efforts to offer even more camps for Summer 2024! Don鈥檛 forget to check out the Summer Camp Blogs to see more details from each of the camps this summer!