Puentes al Futuro Newsletter: Volume 1, Issue 1

As adults we know why we love having the Puentes al Futuro Summer Camp here on campus. It gives the kids access to a lot of fun activities (including sports, an indoor swimming pool, and arts and crafts), they can continue working on their academics (English and Math classes occur twice a week each), and they work closely with college-aged counselors who serve as mentors and role models. 

But, do the kids love it? If so, why? To solve these perplexing questions, the camp's English teacher, Jenny, asked the campers to write about why they love camp as a part of the regular newsletter project she is doing with them!

Read below to see what the kids really think. There are some truly heart-warming accounts.

Puentes to the Future Highlights

For today's post, the CCE staff figured we'd take a break from writing and share a story one of our campers wrote! Prompted by the counselors, this camper wrote about her favorite elective.

The campers and counselors have been doing some pretty fun things here at Puentes al Futuro (Bridges to the Future) Summer Camp. Everyday is a new adventure, activity, and conversation. Already two weeks into it, we're seeing the campers grow and develop as they get used to the camp, their classes, and each other. Between classes/tutoring in the morning and recreational or academic enrichment activities in the afternoon, everyone is exhausted by the end of a fun day. We're excited for what the next couple of weeks will bring! 

Above: Two counselors (on the left in blue shirts) site with a group of campers as they eat lunch and prepare for the afternoon activity. Everyone was given a shirt for being a part of Puentes in the summer; counselors received blue shirts and campers were given red

Below: Campers and counselors relive the best gym class by taking out the parachute on a hot summer day in the field in front of Eastern's Student Center. 

8 Things To Look Forward To

Today marks the end of training week for our Puentes al Futuro (Bridges to the Future) Camp Counselors. This is the third year that the Center for Community Engagement and Eastern are hosting this camp and we are so excited to have these counselors with us! 

For the past four days, they have attended workshops on: working with middle school students, how to engage English Language Learners (ELL), and how to meet a child where he/she is at in his/her academic development and guide him/her towards an academic milestone. They have spent hours putting together enrichment and elective activities for the kids to play. Many an icebreaker has been played, and there has been much reminiscing about their own childhood camp memories. 

Puentes is unlike your typical camp. Specifically tailored to at-risk ELL youth, the focus is shared between providing academic support with giving a forum for the students to develop their individual identity though exploring their cultural heritage(s). The program also runs after school sessions during the school year which families can elect to enroll their children in. Thus, Puentes allows for the kids to build meaningful relationships with the Puentes staff. The Camp Counselors, all Eastern students, are given the opportunity to volunteer in the after school program during the academic year or re-apply as Camp Counselors during the summer. The kinds of positive change that occurs in the students, whether they participate in either the camp or the after school program is incredible to watch, let alone be a part of.

So, on their last day of training, we asked a few of the Counselors what they were most excited for. Here are their responses:

•   "As an alumna, I look forward to working with these students every summer. I can't wait to see their smiles!"

•   "I am looking forward to getting to know the students I'll be mentoring over the summer." -Bryan

•  "I am looking forward to the kids coming and learning new things."

•  "I am looking forward to a great and fun experience with the kids."

•  "I am excited to learn about the different cultural experiences that will happen over the summer."

•  "I hope to guide the students towards finding a passion that they really love and steer the students away from negative influences."

•   "Three days instead of two, and almost double the amount of kids that we had least year! Trained counselors ready to pour all their energy into making this camp a great experience for the kids in our community. I can't wait for the first day of camp! It is going to be great. I expect that the kids, counselors, and staff will have an unforgettable experience." -Rosie, Camp Director

•  "I'm excited to see young people from our community growing academically through our camp while learning and exploring  their own and their friends' cultural identities." -Luis, Assistant Director of the Center for Community Engagement

Be sure to check back for some upcoming posts about what everyone at the camp is up to!