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Variety and Fun Await Campers at Mercer County College This Summer

As New Jerseyans eagerly await the spring thaw, a group of staff members at Mercer County Community College is already focused on summer.  The college will welcome children ages 6-18 to campus during the summer months for a variety of camp programs. Families may register their children for the full summer, or in shorter-term monthly or weekly programs.  All programming is based at MCCC’s West Windsor campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road. The season kicks off June 20 and continues through August 12. 
 
Registration is under way for Camp College, Sports Camps, and Tomato Patch Visual and Performing Arts Workshops (which begin June 27).  The camps utilize the full range of resources available on the MCCC campus, including a full-service cafeteria, Olympic size pool, athletic fields, computer labs, performing arts theater, television studio, tennis courts, fine arts classrooms and more. Before and after-camp care is available for all programs.  Detailed information is available at www.mccc.edu/camps.

Camp College’s Campus Kids program is an enriching alternative to traditional summer day camp.  It is offered Monday through Thursday for children ages 6-12 in two four-week sessions: June 20-July 14 and July 18-August 11.  Combining academics, the arts, recreational games and athletics, campers create an individualized schedule of up to six daily options from a list of nearly 100.  A sampling of activities includes “Archery,” “Cartooning,” “Magnificent Magicians,” “Math Boosters,” “Hola Español,” “Movie Makers,” “Green Science, “Pet Care,” “Outdoor Skills,” and “Set Design.” On Friday Fun Days, campers may extend their week or attend for just one day, going on outings to the Academy of Natural Sciences, Iceland Skating Center, Rockville Climbing Center, Hamilton Lanes, Johnson’s Corner Farm and more. Themed on-campus Friday events include “Kitchen Chemistry,” “Robot World” and “Circus, Circus.”
 
Camp College’s Specialty Camps are offered in one- and two-week sessions, both full and half day. Among the diverse offerings are cooking classes featuring different weekly themes; science topics such as archeology/paleontology, biology/medicine, chemistry, physics and flight, and crime scene investigation; arts classes in glass and metal design, pottery, gardening, and painting, and computer classes in graphic and web design, video game production and PowerPoint.  Recreational camps feature Aqua Adventures, Golf Camp, Fishing Camp and Rock Climbing Camp. New academic programs for grades 8-10 include Geometry Prep, Physics Prep, Game Design, Architecture, and Civil and Electrical Engineering.

The cost for Camp College is $925 for the first four-week session and $985 for the second four weeks.  Specialty Camp prices vary.  Camp College will host additional information sessions on Saturdays, February 19, March 26 and April 30 on the MCCC West Windsor Campus, 12 to 2 p.m.  For more information, call 609-570-3311 or e-mail campcollege@mccc.edu.
Notes Camp Director Rose Fiorello, “We have put together a terrific program that provides something for everyone.  This is going to be one great summer at camp!” 
Now in their 37th season, MCCC Sports Camps are offered by the college’s Athletics Department and staffed by college and high school coaches, as well as college athletes.  Youngsters can improve their athletic abilities in an atmosphere that supports skill-building and friendly tournament competition.  Awards are presented each week in a number of categories.

This year there are 26 different one-week sessions in 10 different sports: Tennis Camp for ages 8-15 from June 20-29, June 27 - July 1, July 5-8, July 11-15, and July 18-22; Golf Camp for ages 9-16 from July 5-8; Baseball Camp for ages 7-15 from July 11-15; July 18-22; and July 25-29; Softball Camp for ages 7-15 from Aug. 1-5; Basketball Camp for ages 7-15 from June 27-July 1, July 5-8, July 11-15 (girls only); Aug. 1-5  and August 8-12; Speed, Agility and Quickness Camp for ages 8-15 from June 20-24 and July 18-22; Co-Ed Field Hockey Camp for ages 8-12 from July 11-15; Soccer Camp for ages 7-15 from June 20-24; July 5-8; and July 25-29 (girls only) ; Mountain Biking Camp for ages 8-16 from July 25-29 and Aug. 8-12; and Sports Recreation Camp, a half-day program for six-year-olds, from July 11-15 and Aug. 1-5.

According to Camp Director Ryan Zegarski, Field Hockey has been opened up to boys for the first time.  “It’s an Olympic sport; it’s a fun sport; and the director, Susan Albanese, who is the Garden State Games U15 coach, as well as an umpire, is excited to share her skills and enthusiasm for the sport with boys as well as girls.” Zegarski notes that a second week of the popular Mountain Biking Camp has been added.  Also popular are the two weeks of half-day Rec Camp for six-year-olds. “It’s an ideal way to acclimate the youngest campers to the camp setting.  They had a great time last year,” he says.  The costs for Sports Camps vary. For registration information, call 609-570-3779 or email zegarskr@mccc.edu.

Youngsters seeking to pursue their passion for the arts will find fulfillment in MCCC’s Tomato Patch Visual and Performing Arts Workshops, the longest-running multidisciplinary summer arts program in Central New Jersey. Established in 1973 and based at Kelsey Theatre, Tomato Patch offers classes in theater, dance, vocal music and visual arts, taught by arts professionals.  Students select a major area of concentration, as well as electives that allow them to try other disciplines.  Among the popular classes are musical and children’s theater, hip hop, improv, cartooning and anime, painting, drawing, jazz dance, tap dance, stage combat, comedy, and vocal ensemble. New majors include “Acting for The Camera” and “Video Production,” which will be taught separately, with the two classes coming together to make a final video. 

Session I runs for four weeks, from June 27-July 21, for students entering grades 8-12.  Tuition is $650, plus a non-refundable $25 application fee.  Session II runs for three weeks, from July 25-Aug. 11, for students entering grades 5-7.  Tuition is $550, plus a non-refundable $25 application fee.  Both sessions conclude with a "Festival of the Arts" for family and friends, featuring performances and an art exhibit.  Each student receives a t-shirt and a DVD of the festival. 
An additional "Master Class in Theater," from July 25-Aug. 12, is offered for 8th through 12th graders who complete the first Tomato Patch session or have other theater training.  Participants will focus on preparing a polished audition piece, as well as practice scene work.  They will learn the business of show business, including finding jobs and auditioning for theater, television and movies.  The Master Class concludes with a performance on Aug. 12.  Master Class Tuition is $525, plus a non-refundable $25 application fee.
 
Says Kelsey Theatre Artistic Director Kitty Getlik, “Tomato Patch creates a community of artistic kids for a few wonderful weeks each summer. We see these actors and artists bond as they work together.  Particularly at a time when many arts budgets are being reduced in public schools, young people from across the region embrace what we are offering here.  This is a powerful way for the college and Kelsey Theatre to promote the arts to the next generation.”
 
For more information, call 609-570-3566, or e-mail projects@mccc.edu.  The registration form is available for print-out at www.kelseytheatre.net.