Camp Code - Leadership & Staff Training Podcast for Camp Directors

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/the-industry-is-strugglingThis needs to be sustainable, for us, for our staff and for our organizations.Sometimes it feels like the challenges of being a camp professional are too impossible to overcome. You are not alone in feeling this way. Today, Gabz, Beth and IRubytalk about the ever-changing and uncertain landscape of the world and how camp can survive as we move forward.The world around us continues to get busier, with increased tensions both socially and culturally. Yet, we continue to believe that the camp experience is one of the most life-changing opportunities in a young person’s life. Camp allows individuals to be loved for the person they are and allows people to adapt, grow, change and learn from their mistakes. If you have a story, share it! Camp stories allow you to connect with others, it allows people unfamiliar with camp to learn about the opportunity for their children. Camps also need your help! If you have a story you are willing to share, please bring it to https://Thankstocamp.caAs we close out the latest season of Camp Code, we wish everyone a fun summer filled with magic and adventures for your campers. As leaders, go out and help to shape the future of your new staff and create new memories for your campers. Thanks for the season, friends! -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom RubyYou owe it to yourself to be organized! Create yourself a spreadsheet of everything you order, complete with notes, current prices and links to the product. Your future self will thank you! Ruby usually builds her lists in the fall once camp is done and when it comes time to order supplies, the links are readily available, making the process much easier for you!-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at ultracampmanagement.com/campcode/

Discover essential strategies to successfully integrate first-year staff at camp. Learn how to create a welcoming environment that values new arrivals and fosters connections with returning team members. Emphasize clear communication and shared experiences to enhance team dynamics. Find out how to give new staff space to adjust while also providing them with support systems. Through engaging activities and personal touches, set the stage for a transformative training season that cultivates confidence and a strong camp community.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/setting-guest-speakers-up-for-successYou treat everyone in your camp community with intention and care…do you do the same with the guest speakers you bring to training?If you are utilizing guest speakers this year, you want to listen to this episode. As folks who have both hosted guest speakers and people who HAVE BEEN the visiting speaker, we have some opinions to share.-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom Gabrielle Raill:When you are planning, compare your core objectives with your list of training sessions. If a session doesn’t meet at least 70% of your core objectives, then don’t do it during training or change HOW you run it so you meet your core objectives.-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at ultracampmanagement.com/campcode/

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/white-privilege-at-trainingOur staff are ready for this conversation…are you?White privilege is real and it’s everywhere, even at summer camp. Join us today as we talk about what we can do about it. But first, here’s our disclaimer: We are looking at this through the lens of three white individuals and our focus today is to encourage white folks to do the work.-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom Beth - Credit to Peggy McIntoshPeggy McIntosh is the founder of the seed project and says that in order to understand the way privilege works, you have to be able to see patterns and systems in social life but you also have to care about individual experiences. One’s own individual experience is sacred, testifying to it is very important but so is seeing that it is set in a framework outside of one’s personal experience that is much bigger and has repetitive statistical patterns in it. In an article by Harpers Bazaar, Peggy shares 20 everyday examples of white privilege that are taken advantage of to shed light on some of the realities experienced in real life. The full list of examples curated by Peggy McInstosh can be found at nationalseedproject.org. Have your staff break into small groups and talk about these examples. Another example is Learningforjustice.org which has a toolkit and resources that can be used to help facilitate camp training.-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at ultracampmanagement.com/campcode/

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/inservice-trainingOne of the best ways to dedicate your team to continuous improvement!Believe it or not, staff training doesn’t end on the last day of your orientation. In fact, a great strategy to keep staff engaged, motivated, and excited throughout the summer–and fight off those mid-summer-slumps–is to continually offer training and learning opportunities as the season progresses. Today’s episode focuses on some of our best ideas for conducting training throughout the summer.-We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom RubyCollect information from your staff! One way that I did it was that I would put up a piece of paper that is in the staff lounge/workspace within easy access for all staff and ask the questions “What would you’d like to be discussed during the next staff meeting?” By doing it this way, staff could anonymously fill them out and then I could choose things that were important for the next meeting. Often, I would bring up the topics and check them off on a list in front of the staff to show the staff that I value their feedback.-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at ultracampmanagement.com/campcode/

Camp directors discuss strategies for adjusting to staff turnover, including revisiting job descriptions, leveraging online training, providing extra support to new leaders, and utilizing mentorship. They also share tips on effective task management, insightful training activities, transitioning camp staff, and building a strong team through professional development and gratitude.

The hosts discuss the significance of staff training in preparing camp staff, advice on creating a visual staff training schedule using tools like Google Calendar, importance of research and information gathering before staff training, organizing tasks and building staff relationships, and using a Sunday basket to reduce visual clutter and prioritize tasks.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/9-things-you-might-be-surprised-you-need-to-teachChalk it up to the pandemic, but it’s time for some re-teaching.In this week’s episode Gabz, Beth and Ruby recognize that as we get closer to the summer camp season, camp directors are already planning out their summer. To help camp leaders, our pros are here to break down 9 things that we think every camp leader should be prepared to teach!The ability to talk to strangers. This includes parents, campers, vendors, shop owners in town. Developing “small talk etiquette” will help your camp staff be more confident, demonstrating that they are leaders within your organizationHow to have a successful day off. Some of your staff might be new, teaching them where they can go and what they can do on their time off is valuable for your staff. Helping your staff to set their boundaries and using language such as “During downtime, I like to…”Matching/mirroring - finding new ways for your staff to build their own rapport with other peopleLife skills! Teach your staff how to use the basic tools around camp including screwdrivers, wrenches, plungers. Take it one step further, how to turn off water at camp, how to use a fire extinguisher or maybe even how to change a tire! Teach staff how to do laundry. This sounds self-explanatory, but your staff may have never done laundry before in their life. Silence is okay - become comfortable with the silenceTeach staff that there is life beyond camp and that be real with your staff that they will not be able to respond to family and friends in real-time. Teaching staff to connect in new ways, like written letters are important.Learn a morning routine and how to conserve your energy to last all dayPlay, play, play - Camp is supposed to be fun. -We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom Beth:Staff need to know what to do offsite and onsite. We need to talk about staff behavior on their day off because even when they are not working, they are representing camp. I used to love when I got calls from cottagers and shops telling me that staff were being respectful to others. One thing we should focus on is ensuring our staff knows what to do if they run into trouble while offsite. To help, give your staff business cards with camp phone numbers, addresses or any pertinent information that may be needed during an emergency.-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/boundaries-and-community-normsMore on boundaries - because we all need to hear it.Happy Valentines day camp pros! In this episode (and as always) our hosts are here to spread their love and joy for camp. After celebrating 100 episodes, we are back to our regular programming. This week, we continue from where we left off in episode 99, focusing on boundaries and building community. If you haven’t listened to episode 99 perhaps have a listen to that first. Today, we explore what boundaries are, what they look like, defining the difference between healthy and unhealthy boundaries and their related effects. Afterwards, we dig into how exactly boundaries at camp can be used. Finally, we explore the terms ‘consent’ vs ‘cooperation’ and what this all means at camp. The most important piece to all of this, is to examine what boundaries look like with staff. Developing training sessions with your staff to help define boundaries and letting them know that it is okay to say ‘no.’ In parallel, take a moment to make things perfectly clear that boundaries will be crossed and people will make mistakes. We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcode-Best Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom Ruby (From John, Director of Camp Kadesh)In any conflict, there are three types of people; red, blue and gray people. Red personalities are angry and aggressive and often do not think before they speak. Gray people ignore the conflict and pretend it does not exist and blue people are perfect, wonderful and kind. Be the common ground in a conversation, always be blue.-Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp Ouareau-Thanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at ultracampmanagement.com/campcode/

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/camp-code/what-weve-learned-so-far100 Episodes!? Thanks for being along for the ride, friends!100 episodes into this journey, our camp pros have led us through over 60 hours of leadership gold. This episode is all about reflection. As much as our hosts have taught us all, they too have learned from one another. Gabz, Ruby and Beth share their most memorable Camp Code moments and reflect on what they have learned from one another and how those teachable moments have been applied throughout their own training sessions.To the listeners, it continues to be you and your passion for camp that keep our hosts motivated to bring new content. When this podcast was first created, Beth, Gabz and Ruby all thought that this would last at most; two seasons. Here we are, eight years later and the reach and success that we have had with Camp Code should be celebrated.100 Episodes and 60 hours of professional develop content, focused on designing intentional staff trainingOver 31,000 downloads over the last two yearsOver 50 5-star ratings in podcasting appsOver 2500 cities, towns, municipalities across the world: top 6:Toronto, Columbus OH, Montreal, Sheboygan WI, Manhattan, ChicagoListeners on all six inhabited continents - so if you go to Antarctica, throw us a download while you are down there!Listeners in 75 countiesMost recent popular episodes: Engaging Multigenerational Staff During Training - Camp Code #71Staff Meetings Can Be Staff Training - Camp Code #65We hope you love this episode of Camp Code! If you do, please consider subscribing to the show, and leaving us a rating in your Podcast app. It’s SO easy, just head to https://ratethispodcast.com/campcodeBest Practice for Leadership TrainingFrom Beth Allison (borrowed from Gabz!)Young adults do not see the world the same way older adults do. Gabz came up with a way to frame the younger generation of staff to help older staff take in their perspective. Gabz has named them the WTF generation. These younger adults are a generation of humans that want to make an impact and they also need support. So in the WTF, it stands for multitude of things; What to fight, what to fund, what to follow and what to fear. If I ask myself these questions, it helps me to better prepare when I have to run a session, a program or how to write a message on social media so that the younger generation will understand what I am trying to communicate.Your Hosts:Beth Allison, Camp Consultant - Go Camp ProRuby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby OutdoorsGabrielle Raill, Camp Director - Camp OuareauThanks to our sponsor…UltraCampWouldn’t it be refreshing if your registration software gave you MORE time? With UltraCamp, you can track attendance, manage staff applications, streamline registration, and much more. Get back the time you need to focus on what is really important: CAMP! Find out more at