The 168 acre camp was deeded
to the Yosemite Area Council (now Greater
Yosemite Council) in 1969 by the Pickering
Lumber Corporation and included the facilities
of its Soap Creek Logging Camp. In 1976,
Camp John Mensinger opened for Scout camping
with new and modern facilities. The camp
is rich in logging history and is in an ideal
location for our Scouting programs.
Camp John Mensinger is the
perfect setting for Boy Scouts to have a
great Scouting experience. Our camp programs
offer a diverse range of Scouting activities
that includes aquatics, shooting sport, nature
study, handicrafts, Scoutcraft and high adventure.
Boy Scout Summer Camp Important
Points
You should know some important
facts about how the Boy Scouts of America
(BSA) delivers its summer camp programs.
The BSA believes these factors are the foundation
that allow the organization to pro-vide superior
summer camp experiences and to
deliver fun with a purpose!
Camp
Accreditation —Annual camp
visits by trained volunteers and professionals
ensure the following:
- Camps are checked to ensure that health
and safety standards are met through an
annual BSA accreditation process.
- Camps show that important program elements
required for Scouts to have meaningful
learning experiences are in place.
Camp Staff —Highly
skilled youth and adult members are recruited
and trained. Key camp staff members are required
to be certified through national. training
events.
BSA camps utilize highly qualified
camp staff members. Because these
individuals
are not responsible for taking a troop leadership
role, they can utilize their unique skills
and teaching abilities for mentoring purposes.
Youth camp staff members are
young enough to connect with Scouts on a
social level, but experienced and mature
enough to serve as a role model.
Unit Attendance —The
fact that troops attend camp as a unit is
a benefit to the experience.
- Scouts attend with their own adult leaders.
Boys do not have to adjust to adults they
do not know while at camp. This provides
an opportunity to further extend the mentoring
role of adult leaders with their Scouts.
- The patrol method is used. Boys at camp
learn leadership and teamwork by living
out their week in the patrol method, which
is based on youth leadership. In addition,
this organizational method teaches independence
and interdependence among Scouts.
Leader Benefits — Personal
growth benefits for leaders are another out-come
of Scout summer camp. The majority of adult
leaders agree that they were with people
they respect (92 percent), they had fun (91
percent), they felt close to nature (84 percent),
they built friendships with other leaders
(81 percent), they learned from other leaders
(71 percent), and they reduced their stress
(65 percent).
These facts and much more information come
from a study conducted by Louis Harris & Associates
for the Boy Scouts of America titled Summer
Camp Outcomes Study and published in
2003.
In this study, Scouts indicate that summer
camp is more than just a place to have fun.
It also offers Scouts the opportunity to
participate in physically and intellectually
challenging activities, introduces them to
new and rewarding experiences,and provides
them with supportive and caring relationships.
This study infers that positive outcomes
of Scout summer camp occur because the environment
and activities at camp incorporate all of
the elements of healthy youth development.
The BSA contributes significant time and
resources to summer camps around the country.
Therefore, the organization believes it is
important to gain an objective understanding
of the outcomes of summer camp experiences
in the lives of members.
Harris
Interactive was challenged with developing
and implementing a research design that would
provide a thorough evaluation of Scout summer
camps. More specifically, their goal was
to measure the extent to which those camps
deliver the elements of healthy youth development.
The study document summarizes the findings
of three survey groups used to meet the study
objectives. From 106 Scout summer camps across
the United States, the following groups were
surveyed:
- Boy Scouts. A total
of 10,034 on-site daily journals completed
by Scouts.
- Scout leaders. A total
of 4,491 post-camp surveys among randomly
selected volunteer leaders who attended
one of these summer camps.
- Parents of Scouts. A
total of 5,299 post-camp surveys among
parents of Boy Scouts who attended summer
camp.
Overview
Scouts indicate that summer camp is more than just a place
to have fun. It also offers Scouts the opportunity to participate
in physically and intellectually challenging activities,
introduces them to new and rewarding experiences, and provides
them with supportive and caring relationships. This study
infers that positive outcomes of Scout summer camp occur
because the environment and activities at camp incorporate
all of the elements of healthy youth development.
If you would like to read the results of
this study you can: (Click
Here, 3.14 MB)
