Many overnight camps are canceled or on hold; some nonprofits offer limited day camps
By ANDREA LOPEZ-VILLAFAÑA , KRISTEN TAKETA
MAY 31, 2020 | 11:11 AM
Kids and parents could use summer camp this year more than ever, experts say.
Not only can summer programs help prevent learning loss while school is out, but they can give parents a break from the constant child care and home-schooling they have had to do this spring. Summer camp opportunities will be much more scarce this year, as many organizations cancel camp due to COVID-19 concerns and others make their camp virtual.
A few organizations are offering in-person camps, but they have limited the number of children they’ll enroll.The YMCA of San Diego typically serves 50,000 children a year in summer camps, but it will serve fewer this year, said Courtney Pendleton, YMCA spokeswoman. The YMCA will open 10 of its 18 facilities for day camps on June 22.
The Boys and Girls Clubs of San Diego camps, which saw an attendance of 1,500 kids a day before the pandemic, will scale back to having 80 to 100 kids at each facility. Only three of the 12 Boys and Girls Clubs facilities will reopen to day campers on June 1.
Michelle Malin, vice president of development with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego, said its Clairemont camp is already at capacity.“Parents are getting ready to get back to work so they are grateful they have this option,” Malin said. “It gives them peace of mind to have their children in this space and be safe.”
The COVID-induced shortage of summer camp opportunities is likely to worsen inequities that are already well-established in summer, experts say.Summer is an inequitable time for low-income children, who are much less likely to afford to participate in camp or other summer programs, said Aaron Dworkin, CEO of the National Summer Learning Association.