Registration for 2018 is live!
Early registration discounts through October 15th! Register today.
Early registration discounts through October 15th! Register today.
"Longacre was a true haven for me. Growing up in Los Angeles as a teenager, I got so wrapped up in the day-to-day drama and relentless schedule of high school life that I rarely had time to focus on personal growth and development … or just having fun! Longacre afforded me the opportunity to learn how to develop deep and meaningful connections with my peers and how to slow down and find fun in the simple activities of day-to-day life."
Longacre Leadership Camp is accredited by the American Camp Association. The American Camp Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Martinsville, Indiana, and the only accreditation body in American camping. Being accredited means Longacre Leadership Camp meets 300 standards of health, safety and program quality. The safety of your child is our top priority.
We recruit staff who are passionate in their area of expertise. Passion is the key. If staff are passionate, campers feed off of it. We've seen many versions of this example: with a garden novice, kids are hot and bored; but with a garden lover, kids are curious, digging, goofing around, spraying each other with hoses, filling their baskets, and eating vegetables raw. That's experiential education.
This means two things: we articulate our principles, and those principles inform what campers experience on a daily basis.
A Leadership Camp for teens (ages 12-18), two sessions, both three weeks, best to combine for six weeks.
A separate MiniCamp for children and tweens (ages 8-12), one session in August, just ten days long.
Discover life outside. We like to build, explore, work, play, rest, care and create. Your child will choose every day, and get to do more of what they love.
We make our campers a deal: "If you take some responsibility, we'll give you some independence." Campers who do well at Longacre love that deal. They are making decisions, making mistakes (it's ok), and developing new skills as they go. They are being inclusive of others, receiving feedback from their friends, and reflecting on their growth experience.
In 2016, we had campers from Australia, Belgium, China, the Dominican Republic, Guinea, Italy, Haiti, Jordan, Kuwait, Nigeria, South Korea, Turkey, Ukraine, the UK and Venezuela. Diversity makes for a vibrant community. Plus, exposing your child to different cultures early on has a lasting impact.
Returning campers are eligible for the Leadership Project — the pinnacle of the Longacre experience. The Leadership Project runs during the leadership camp for teens. It's invitation-only for campers 15+ who have demonstrated a capacity for leadership. We put them in leadership positions and then give them tons of support. These are the campers setting the example for your child.
Our campers are developing skills they can use in the real world — and this includes technology. Given the ever increasing use of technology in our society, it should not come as a surprise when children grow attached to devices that are as all-consuming as smartphones. At Longacre, we want to help our campers develop a sense of balance with their devices, so they can better manage their behavior. That is why, with strict limitations, we allow devices at our camp.
Our mission is simple: to offer a multi-year growth experience, with a focus on communication. Our results, however, are not so simple. Here we present three ways of looking at our results.
FAQs, directions, how to contact us, and our parents' guide, 'How to Find a Great Camp'.