Summer Day Camp Benefits Children and Texas A&M Students

Children painting as part of an outdoor crafting project.

Since 1982, Camp Adventure has provided children ages 8-12 with fun summer memories while offering useful skills to campers and student counselors alike. Our Physical Education Activity Program (PEAP) hosts the annual two-week day camp, which introduces children to new ways of staying active — ranging from archery, canoeing and ziplining to arts and crafts.

“It’s not just doing an activity, they have to learn about the activity first,” Daniel Gomez, instructional professor and Camp Adventure director said. “So for canoeing, they don’t just get in a boat and start paddling. They’re going to learn about the parts of the boat and how to paddle correctly.”

Each year brings new themes and a variety of activities. Previous years included rappelling off Kyle Field and creating a blowup water park. Gomez said they even get campers from outside of Texas. “We have campers that come and stay with their grandparents or other family so they can go to camp,” he added.

A counselor provides archery lessons to campers.

Current Texas A&M students can apply to become camp counselors and practice what they learned in their classes to instruct young campers and mentor high school counselors-in-training (CITs). Counselors are also eligible to receive a scholarship they can use the following fall semester.

The high school-age CITs not only benefit from the lessons the college student counselors provide but the experience gained by teaching the younger campers. Many CITs are former campers themselves. “It’s really great when you see a camper grow up and return as a CIT and then as a counselor and student here,” Courtlandt Arrants, instructional assistant professor and Camp Adventure program director said. “You get to see how it impacted their lives through all of it, and it’s definitely an experience that they take with them even into adulthood.”

This year’s Camp Adventure runs from May 27 through June 7. To register or learn more, visit tx.ag/CampAdventure.

For media inquiries, contact Ruben Hidalgo.