Scouting For Counselors

Tips for finding the ideal candidates

By Jessica Lippe

Remember the last camp counselor you saw--a 16-year-old high-school student with a death glare that made you shiver, an iPod super-glued to his ears and a general ignorance of the campers that he was supposed to care for? What were parents thinking when they allowed their kids to spend an entire week with this counselor? This guy is not your only option. It isn’t difficult to find better counselors. With these tips, you’ll never have to settle for Mr. iPod-obsessed, ignorant guy ever again!

Look In The Right Places
Where’s the best place in town to find a bunch of young, energetic, potential camp counselors? No, it’s not the local high school! If you put up an announcement for camp counselors in a school building, you may get quite a few interested teens. Unfortunately, the majority will be like our guy with the death glare. Instead, look for places that are likely to have more charitable-minded youth. Honor societies are an effective option since members must possess good character, leadership and service qualities in order to be inducted. Plus, honor-society students likely will be willing to help because they can use their camp-counseling time as required volunteer hours. Another option is to call several church youth pastors to see if they know of any high-school students who would do well as counselors. Local youth community-service organizations--such as Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Key Club, 4-H or Interact Club--also can be a gold mine for possible recruits. These organizations are filled with teens who will love to help out at a camp--and they’ll be more than happy to do it for free!

Sometimes, you can even recruit adult counselors. Perhaps a parent likes to be with his or her child at camp. Maybe an elementary-school teacher still wants to work with kids during the summer break. But honestly, some 17-year-olds will do just as well (or better) at counseling than 37-year-olds. The important thing is to look for places that have mature people who can handle a group of rowdy, young campers.

Ask The Right Questions
It’s always a good idea to ask prospective counselors to fill out a survey, or come in for an interview. Instead of asking the typical name, number and address questions, try something more unique. How about, “What was your favorite camp activity when you were a kid?” Or “Why do you enjoy the outdoors?” These non-threatening questions will not only help you decide who qualifies for a counseling position, but you’ll also get to know your counselors better.

Ask For References
Unless you know the counselor applicant personally, a reference is always a good idea. You may obtain a reference by asking applicants for letters of recommendation or phone numbers. If you choose to request phone numbers, develop several questions to ask each person you call. Be sure to ask about the applicant’s character and leadership, as these are likely to be the two most important qualities of a counselor. If--when talking to a reference--you have a good follow-up question, be sure to ask it! After all, you’re calling the reference because that person knows the applicant well.

Know What Counselors Can Handle
When I was 14, the youngest counselor at camp, I was put in charge of 11 girls. While I enjoyed the responsibility, it was obviously a stressful experience. The other counselors--who were several years older and had fewer campers--always seemed to have much more energy than I did. I was constantly exhausted, and my campers had a tendency to run wild.

It’s fine to hire 13- and 14- year-olds, as long as they are junior counselors for an older counselor. Also think about how many kids each counselor can be responsible for. If you’re a parent, you know that it’s tough enough to handle even two or three kids at a time. Try to ensure that no counselor has to be in charge of more than six kids alone. If possible, assign two co-counselors to each cabin. Giving counselors a more manageable task will reduce stress and allow them to be more creative and energetic.

Have A Training Meeting
Before camp starts, plan to meet with all of the counselors and go over the ground rules. Oftentimes counselors don’t know what to do because they haven’t been given guidelines. This is also a great opportunity to tell a little about you, and ask counselors to do the same. Even though you may already know a great deal about the counselors through their applications and references, they probably don’t know anything about each other. Be sure to allow time for counselors to ask questions.

Get Them Involved
You know that much planning goes into making a camp program possible. It’s hard to find creativity and inspiration for all of the games, campfires and crafts. In addition to a training meeting, you probably also have many planning meetings. Consider asking counselors to join the planning committee. It will make planning less stressful for you, and counselors will have a better idea of how the camp runs. In addition, planning meetings will be enjoyable for everyone if you offer snack food and drinks! Some camps even have a retreat weekend where all of the staff stays at the campsite for a few days to get a feel for the area and help with the setup.

Show Your Appreciation
Counseling can be a tiresome task. Be sure to show your appreciation to counselors by giving them an occasional compliment or thank you. Toward the end of camp, give out awards to each of the counselors. (Other staff members love to receive awards, too!) These can be simple certificates of appreciation, or something more personal. Either way, it’s a small token of gratitude that will be appreciated by those who receive it. One camp I worked at gave some very interesting awards to the staff: anyone who helped with water games received a rubber duck, while people who helped at the craft station received a painted gourd. If you have the time to come up with creative awards, definitely try it out!

After camp ends, send out thank-you cards to the counselors. For high-school and college-aged counselors, you may note that you would be happy to write a letter of recommendation if they ever need one. Letting counselors know that their work is appreciated will make them more likely to come back next year.

Jessica Lippe is a freelance writer from Southern Oregon. She can be reached at JesFrogLlama@hotmail.com.