Register your Camper

E-mail Camp Augusta

. . . a love of children and life itself, . . . a willingness to learn and grow
Easily said, very rare in practice.  If that’s you, please call us up -- we want to speak with you..

Quality staff ?

Everyone promises a quality staff.  We invite you to check out our staff selection process, which includes writing multiple essays, reading dozens of pages before the interview, and a 4+ hour interview by a doctor of psychology (not intimidating at all!).  The interview is usually done over 3 sessions.  Staff are usually older on average than most camps.  30+ hours of videos on child, culture, and human development are viewed before staff arrive at camp.  Over 300 pages of staff manuals are read before staff training, and each staff member takes a 2 hour oral exam on the content before arriving at camp.  Our residential staff training is over three weeks long, making it the longest in the nation we know of, and more than triple the length of most other camps.  Please check out the “Camp Augusta Difference” for more information about how our staff are different, and that goes beyonds words.

What do we do when we find someone really interested?

• Make sure camp is right for them
• Potential staff examine our extensive website information that describes the staff experience, so that they can be sure this is the right place for them. 
• Our average interview lasts over four hours! 
• We cover:  what do they expect from camp, how does it fit their career goals, their college experience, mission of the camp, their childhood, physical skills, experience with children and employment, leadership and mentoring, personality, stress management,  values fit with camp, and more. 
• We also do reference checks
• All final applicants are put through a background check.

The vast majority of applicants don’t make it through our rigorous process, but that’s because we hold very high standards.  If you know of anyone who would make an excellent role model and friend to a child, please do send them our way!

During the summer, we have an extensive, professional development system that involves feedback from campers, co-workers, and their immediate support staff.  This occurs several times during the summer, so that we can make sure both the counselors and campers are getting the most from the experience.  Our system is a national model used by camps from coast to coast.

All of this -- and much, much more -- is to ensure that campers have an amazing experience that lasts far beyond their all-too-brief stay at Camp Augusta.
 

Diversity at Camp Augusta

Camp Augusta values a diverse and inclusive community.  We hire staff who are committed to upholding Camp Augusta philosophy and values, and we respect the diversity among staff. Such diversity includes, but is not limited to, differences in racial, cultural, religious, geographic and ethnic origin; economic status; sexual orientation; age; and physical and learning (dis)abilities.  The differences among staff are recognized as a core community strength.  Through the use of nonviolent communication and clean communication techniques taught during staff training, we engage with one another in dialogue about our similarities and differences in a respective and supportive manner.  (more)

What role do international staff play?

Summer after summer, campers comment on how much they love the international flavor of the camp.  It always ranks as one of the five most favorite things about the whole summer.  Roughly 5 - 30% of our staff come from another country.  We often have staff from England, Wales, Australia, Canada, Russia, Ireland, France, Germany, Netherlands, and New Zealand.  Staff have come from countries such as Kazakhstan, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Ukraine, Hungary, Sweden, and many, many more.  Campers learn about another country and culture first hand.  International staff are subjected to the same rigorous selection process as American staff, including a 4+ hour verbal interview (video if possible), essays, and background checks.  They can all speak English with perfect conversational ease.
 

There are always things to be done

One question we hear asked over and over again is ‘What do you do from September until May?’ Simple Answer: Lots! We have several of our staff working here year round, and would love your help too. There is so much to be done! Please visit our Gifts of Love pages for information on how you can help.

If you would like to volunteer for off-season, or summer work, please get in touch!