AMSkier Broad & Bright articles are SKI-Way articles that have been opened to the public. Full access to SKI-Way articles, podcasts and other media is exclusively available to AMSkier camp clients. Interested in becoming a client? Tell us about you and your camp!

SCOOP: BANNING CAMPER/COUNSELOR “RELATIONSHIPS” – BEYOND ROMANCE

Alan Cooper, Esquire
October 3, 2012

As a life-long camper (two years in day camp, eleven years at sleep away camp, four years as a counselor) I remember one of the sweetest times as a camper was when our counselors would participate with us in recreational activities. Camper/counselor basketball and soccer games, chicken fights, tossing us about the pool – it was like having your big brother allowing you to hang out with him and his friends.

Unfortunately, like many other popular activities of yesteryear such as trampolines, diving boards, canoe jousts and rat tail fights that are no longer allowed due to liability exposure, the time has come for camps to eliminate those activities that involve direct play between staff members and campers.

The reason is simple. Two twelve year-old campers collide on the soccer field. One is injured. Because collisions with other players of one’s own age are an inherent and acceptable risk of the sport, there is no liability. The same is not true of a collision between a twelve year-old and a twenty year old, which is not an inherent risk as parents can rightly claim that by allowing their child to attend camp that they did not accept the risk of colliding with someone twice their son or daughter’s size. A softball thrown from one eleven year-old girl to another that breaks someone’s nose is an inherent risk. One thrown by a twenty-one year old is not. In short, nearly every time a camper is injured while “playing” a game or sport with a counselor, the camp will be found liable for the injury and ensuing damages.

I realize that by doing so you are taking away yet another sliver of what makes camp so special. But like so many other things in our litigious society, the potential costs outweigh the benefits.

AMSkier Broad & Bright articles are SKI-Way articles that have been opened to the public. Full access to SKI-Way articles, podcasts and other media is exclusively available to AMSkier camp clients. Interested in becoming a client? Tell us about you and your camp!

TWN: 20 DAYS TO OPENING EXERCISES …AN ALMOST LAST MOMENT REMINDER

Norman Friedman, M.Ed.
May 8, 2012

Bruce Lipton’s (our Scholar-in-Residence) reminder of the level of responsibility accepted by camp directors as they care for other people’s children is worthy of both reading and including in staff communications. Due diligence is accomplished by constant review of all the issues relating to total safety.

Bruce Lipton

Yesterday morning I heard a news report on CNN about the autistic child that was allegedly abused by a teacher. We know this because the father put a recording device in the child’s pocket in an effort to reveal the abuse for the purpose of stopping it, both for his son and to draw public attention and awareness to this problem.

Dr. Steve Perry, Founder of Capital Preparatory Magnet School and CNN Education Contributor said when interviewed, “One bad teacher can mess you up pretty badly,” when he supported the father of the autistic boy’s decision to put a listening device in his son’s pocket. (http://www.dr-steveperry.com/)

It seems to me the same patterns of behavior can be modeled by counselors in camper bunks. As a senior camp professional I know firsthand the diligent work that goes into training and preparing our staff to be the nurturing and compassionate caregivers we claim them to be. That said when I look in the “mirror of reality” the reflection is not always picture perfect. Do I really know what interactions are taking place in a bunk at any given time of the day or night?  Can I say with certainty that we hired and trained the best most caring and considerate staff, and that they are behaving in such a way that if the town gossip and his canary were watching that I would not have to worry about what would be said?

Today is May 1. The entire month of May for me (I dare say for most Camp Professionals) is like the night before a major exam, a big trial, a huge presentation, an important speech, etc.  There is still so much to do and so little time to get it done. There are the tangible tasks and then there are the “big questions” like the ones raised above to be addressed.  None of us are good enough to do it all alone.

The value of networking with other professionals that know what I am doing “the rest of the year” – because they are doing the same thing is invaluable.

We all have engaged and accepted the awesome responsibility to be the caregivers of other people’s children, to be partners in raising and developing our future citizens, and the anticipatory anxiety that is heightened in the month of May is a keen reminder of this awesome responsibility that produces that rare feeling of accomplishment at the end of August when looking back.

‘Wisdom can only be acquired by the sustained development of an inquiring mind’

AMSkier Broad & Bright articles are SKI-Way articles that have been opened to the public. Full access to SKI-Way articles, podcasts and other media is exclusively available to AMSkier camp clients. Interested in becoming a client? Tell us about you and your camp!

TWN: SOCIAL INSOMNIA?…ANOTHER REASON TO PROHIBIT ELECTRONICS AT CAMP?

Norman Friedman, M.Ed.
June 12, 2011

The Little Hawk, a Iowa High School newspaper was mailed to me by Max Friedman, the co-editor of the publication who also happens to be the author and my 16 year-old grandson.  His front page article, as you will note serves as documentation of a rather serious cultural phenomenon that is carefully researched and spelled out. I wish to share it with you not only as a proud grandfather but more importantly another good reason to continue prohibiting electronics of any kind at camp this summer. Without exception, our feedback from camp directors who have taken a very firm stance with campers and parents report success. Surprisingly, many campers enjoy the freedom it offers not to be connected.

Social Insomnia by Max Friedman

The buzzing, beeping and blinking lights of the latest technology surround the typical teenager, creating a cocoon of electricity. “I’m always texting, even when I do my homework,” Kristen Figueroa ‘12 said. “I check my Facebook page all the time.” Advanced technology has become common-place in our society, most notably among teenagers.  Cell phones, computers, music players and various other gadgets are all around. The excessive use of technology has proven to keep teens up late at night, causing sleeping problems. “I usually stay up until 1 o’clock, sometimes 2,” Summers Stokes ‘15 said. “I wake up a lot during the night, and I get woken up by texts a lot too. ”In 2010, a study was conducted by Dr. Peter Polos at the John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, New Jersey with a group of people from ages 8-22. The study monitored the amount of texting that these 40 people did over the course of a month. The results showed that 3400 texts were sent in a month, about 100 every day. Of these 100, there was an average of 34 texts sent at night, after the subjects were supposed to be asleep. According to a 2011 City High Poll, 50% of students reported sending between 30 to 90 texts every day, and 74% of students reported checking either their Facebook or Twitter accounts every day, usually more than once. When students were asked if they used these technologies before bed, 66% said yes. Furthermore, when students were asked if they stayed up later to answer texts and go on Facebook, 43% said yes.

Technologies like texting and Social Media are new, exciting, and easily accessible to teenagers. “If you witness something horrific, you’re going to have post-traumatic stress and insomnia, you won’t be able to sleep,” Dr. Eric Dyken, professor of Neurology and Sleep Disorders at the University of Iowa said. “When something exciting happens it has the same effect, you won’t be able to sleep.” The real problem lies in Sleep Deprivation, according to Dr. Dyken.  “It’s simple, if you don’t get enough sleep, you will be sleepy,” Dr. Dyken said. “This sleepiness can lead to things like car accidents, but more importantly it will affect your overall performance in school.” If students stay up too late, they won’t have enough energy to focus in class and do all of the things that the busy teenage life entails.

Late-night texting has also shown to cause other problems. “People that used texting also experienced more insomnia, leg cramps and learning disabilities like ADD,” Dyken said. Dyken isn’t suggesting that people stop using this technology before bed all together, but rather a way to regulate your sensory intake. “You need a way to wind down.” Dyken said. “In my family, we read comic books.” This “winding down” that Dyken refers to is a form of CBT or Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. CBT is essentially the combination of acknowledging the thoughts that prevent one from falling asleep, and the method of preparing oneself for sleep. Dyken’s family reads a comic book before bed to get away from the stresses of life, and help them doze off after a long day. “I got my idea from Dr. Breus,” Dyken said. Dr. Michael J. Breus is known as “The Sleep Doctor” for his extensive studies with sleep and CBT.  Breus recommends that people have good sleep hygiene or a system of preparing for sleep. For Dyken, the system consists of delving into a comic book, but he realizes that it’s not for everyone. “Breus’ idea is a construct to build off of,” Dyken said. “You can take the idea and make it your own.” While texting and social media have revolutionized the way our world communicates in many positive ways, they have been proven to cause sleeping problems with teenagers. Technology is stimulating, and will hinder normal sleeping patterns. “This technology revs up your stimulatory system and if you use it before bed, you will stay up late,” Dr. Dyken said.

Please share your comments, suggestions, and opinions about this article and my continuing recommendation about electronic free summers for young people fortunate enough to experience life as you choose to design it at your intentional communities. As always, your reactions both pro and con are important to us.

AMSkier Broad & Bright articles are SKI-Way articles that have been opened to the public. Full access to SKI-Way articles, podcasts and other media is exclusively available to AMSkier camp clients. Interested in becoming a client? Tell us about you and your camp!

THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT – BACK TO BASICS

OPENING THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS

Alan Cooper, Esquire
June 10, 2010

Diabetes, food allergies, ADHA, cerebral palsy-these and other issues are becoming more commonplace as children with disabilities are mainstreamed, and as ever-increasing numbers of youngsters seem to be diagnosed with various ailments. Coupled with improving medical care, more comprehensive governmental and insurance support, and the passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”), camp directors mush now deal with situations that their predecessors never faced.

Camps must deal with two sections of the ADA, one for consumers and one for employees. Camps are far less likely to face employment issues and they will be addressed in another Broad and Bright, although many of the same principles apply. Simply stated, the ADA makes it illegal to discriminate against anyone with a disability that substantially limits one or more major life activity.

In the case of children, it applies to illnesses or impairments, such as diabetes, ADD and ADHD, serious allergies, etc. and also applies to temporary disabilities, such as a broken leg. Camps cannot bar children with disabilities from camp, unless it is impossible to serve the child’s needs without fundamentally altering the nature of goods or services offered. For example, a child with a broken leg is able to participate in most general camp activities if she can be transported in a golf cart. Even though your camp prohibits the use of carts to transport campers, a“reasonable accommodation” can be made without fundamentally altering the nature of camp. On the other hand, a wilderness camp is not required to build smooth trails through miles of woods so that a child in a wheelchair can participate, as that would fundamentally alter the “goods and services” the camp offers. Unfortunately, it is not always so straightforward, and questions often arise when the camp learns that a child has a disability that may require some modification of camp routines and protocols.

HERE IS A GUIDE that you can use to assure your compliance with the law when you are told about Sally’s specific disability: You can NEVER say “We don’t take children like that” or other similar automatic rejections. The main focus of the ADA is to ELIMINATE STEREOTYPING OF DISABILITIES. Instead, EACH CHILD AND HIS DISABILITY MUST BE TREATED INDIVIDUALLY.

1.    You can NEVER say “We don’t take children like that” or other similar automatic rejections. The main focus of the ADA is to eliminate stereotyping of disabilities. Instead, each child and his disability must be treated individually.

2.    Ask the parent for written permission to speak with the child’s doctor in order to assess precisely what the child may require. If this request
is refused, you may lawfully reject the child for camp as this information is necessary in order for you to comply with the law.

3.    Speak to the doctor. More often than not, you will learn that the child is perfectly able to handle the rigors of camp with only minor adjustments to protocol. When necessary, you may secure a promise of availability from the doctor if any particular needs arise.

4.    If in doubt, you may speak with your own doctor, your camp doctor, or if you are insured with us, you may call AMSkier for access to medical advice. Again, this will help you make an individual assessment on the needs of the child and whether or not you can accommodate her particular disability.

5.    Obtain any other information you can, including accessing any relevant websites and downloading all pertinent information. Remember, in the event of an ADA claim against you, it is important to show that you acted in good faith and did your research in determining whether or not the individual child could be accommodated in your camp.

6.    If you are willing to accept the child, discuss the details of the situation with the parent and come up with a plan all can agree to. If you cannot accept the child, make sure the parent is aware of the steps you took to assess the needs of their child.

A SPECIAL NOTE ON “SHADOWS”

Shadows are increasingly popular as governments and insurance plans pay for someone to stay with, or “shadow” a child with special needs. Under the ADA, you can NOT refuse to accept a child on that basis alone, as allowing a shadow has been ruled to be a reasonable accommodation to a child’s disability. In no case are you required to pay for the shadow. You may, however-and in fact should require the shadow to undergo all the requirements of your regular staff, including criminal history checks, dress codes, prohibitions against tobacco use, etc. Do not place the shadow on your payroll. He or she works for the family of the child, not you.

You must also resist the temptation to ask the shadow to help out with other camp responsibilities when not busy with his or her individual charge. Do not use them to supervise other children as lifeguards, drivers, etc. They are being paid to watch a specific child, and no more. This may seem like a lot to swallow, but you can take solace in the ADA’s noble purpose, to allow more children to experience the joys of living, in this case, the lifetime memories of summer camp. Chances are that the child will never forget the opportunities you gave her, and that, as with most children, the time spent at your camp will be one of the highlights of her life.

Alan Cooper, Esquire, is General Counsel and Claims Director at AMSkier. He is a member of the Pike County, Pennsylvania Task Force on The Americans With Disabilities Act, and has lectured extensively to business groups and camping conferences about issues related to the ADA.