CIT programs for teens
Hi, My son and I are a little late figuring out the summer (he'll be 15 and a rising sophomore), and I'm wondering about counselor or leader in training programs. I think he's too young/inexperienced to get a paid position at a summer camp, so it seems like a CIT/LIT program where we pay a smallish fee and he gets experience is the way to go. I'm looking at Camp Edmo, particularly the Tech LIT (maybe all the Minecraft will pay off!) and the city of El Cerrito's leadership camp. Does anyone have experience with either of these programs? Any other great leadership/training programs that we should consider? At 15 is he too old and should he be looking at other types of activities? Thanks.
Apr 11, 2018
Parent Replies
Hi there - I think CIT'ing at age 15 is perfect. Our son was a CIT at Full Belly Farm (sleep away) camp last summer at age 14, and will do so again this summer. He enjoyed it, and I think it gives kids that age the right combo of supervision and responsibility. If it had fit our schedule (they require 2 consecutive weeks), we would have had him CIT at Berkeley Day Camp, run by the City of Berkeley, which he and his sister both attended from K-6th grade and loved. It's a very traditional camp - hiking, games, arts/crafts, etc. at either Tilden or Berkeley Marina, so no "tech focus" or anything, but really a great outdoorsy experience with a lot of kids. And we liked the counselors there very much. Good luck!
We’re jn the same boat with our 15 year old daughter. We used someone who does camp and summer program referral. It’s a free service. She gets paid by the placement. Happy to connect you.
My son, now 16, will be an LIT at Camp Edmo for the third time this summer (2-3 weeks each summer). It’s been a great experience for him and he’s gotten nice recommendation letters from the camp. It was hard to fit it into our summer schedule this year, but it was a priority for him, so we did.