Summer Camp Opening Plans for Summer 2021

Children, parents, and staff of summer camps across Long Island and New York state are looking forward to and hoping for camp in summer 2021. For campers, camp is a tradition that allows them to spend quality time with friends, do activities that they can’t do elsewhere, and have an escape from their usual routine of school or extracurricular activities. Camp is an opportunity for campers to just have fun for the summer. For parents, camp serves as childcare if they have to work and need a replacement for school to keep their kids occupied and busy. Camp can also save parents from potential boredom of their children during a long summer with nothing to do. 

In the summer of 2020, summer camps were greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Some camps adopted new safety and cleaning measures to make the summer as safe and close to normal as possible, while others were unable to open and had to close for the year. Day camps and overnight camps alike were affected, and campers who were relying on camp to give them an escape from the worries and isolation associated with the quarantine hoped that their camp wouldn’t announce closure for the summer. According to CampMinder, nearly two out of three summer camps, day and resident, were closed in summer 2020. According to CNBC Make It, The American Camp Association (ACA) said, “a preliminary estimate of the direct revenue lost this summer because of the coronavirus pandemic is about $16 billion. Approximately 19.5 million children will not have camp experiences this summer and the closures translate into about 900,000 lost jobs.” 

Camps that did open last summer had overwhelming success regarding COVID-19 cases. According to Newsday, “just one Long Island day camp saw coronavirus cases, but spread was contained.” Among the camps with zero COVID-19 cases in the summer of 2020 were the YMCA of Long Island. Dan Weir, senior director of program development for the YMCA of Long Island, said regarding summer 2020 and plans for summer 2021, “We feel so confident because of this past summer… We had zero [COVID-19] cases last summer.” 

Because of the financial impacts on the summer camp industry and staff and the need for children to get back into their routine of summer fun at camp, camps are really trying to open for 2021. The success of the camps that did operate last year should be a good sign for other camps to open and run smoothly this summer, but there are still safety precautions to follow. The CDC’s guidance for operating youth camps provides many safety precautions camps should take, including promoting vaccination, hand-washing, physical distancing or cohorting, and also guidelines for mask usage. The CDC states, “Staff and campers who are fully vaccinated do not need to wear masks at camp, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance.” However, the New York State Department of Health issued its own guidance for childcare, day camp, and overnight camp programs. In this guidance, social distancing, mask wearing, and the different precautions needed for different activities are all described. The full guidelines with extensive detail can be found on the official website of New York State, but a few key points include: “Social distancing and face covering requirements do not apply to those who are fully vaccinated except as otherwise specified…Young children/campers (i.e., those that are not yet in kindergarten) do not need to wear face coverings when they are in child care or day camp program facility or area. Older children/campers are encouraged but not required to wear face coverings as feasible… The same group of children/campers [should] stay with the same staff whenever and wherever possible. Group size should be as small as possible but must be limited to no more than thirty-six children or campers.” 

Even with all of this guidance, many camps are excited for the best summer yet. Because of all of the precautions camps will be taking to keep campers and staff as safe as possible, directors want parents to know that their child will be safe at camp. Mark Transport, owner-director of Crestwood Country Day Camp told Newsday, “Schools and camps are very safe, and their numbers are lower than the surrounding communities, so parents should feel very comfortable sending their kids to camp and school." Sleepaway camps are also looking forward to a great summer while incorporating safety precautions. According to Newsday, Iroquois Springs Sleepaway Camp “...has invested in tents for dining and programming and will try to do as much as possible outside... Campers will be tested for Covid prior to arrival, on the first day, three to five days after arrival and at intervals during the summer.” 

In addition to administrators at camp, many campers are also looking forward to the summer at their happy place. HF sophomore Allie Ebanks regularly attends an overnight music summer camp, where she is able to do what she loves. She said, “This year has been especially hard because I have not had the opportunity to do the many things I enjoy like performing and collaborating with other artists. I am excited to go to camp to rekindle my love for what I do, and finally experience what I have been longing for all year.” Camp is a one-of-a-kind experience that so many people anticipate all year. Looking forward to this summer, camp families and staff alike are so excited. Mark Newfield, owner of Iroquois Springs camp, said, “We're on the phone every day with families...They can't wait, we can't wait."