Trail Blazers has leadership development opportunities available for high school-aged youth in our day camp, overnight camp, and after school programs. We partner with SYEP to offer work experience for youth in our Day Camp. Our Overnight Camp has 4-week Leaders in Training programming as well as a full-summer internship for prior LITs (by invitation). During the academic year, we offer paid internships to students at the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism in Brooklyn in our UOS After School program.
Each of our leadership programs is designed with participants’ futures in mind. Participants develop real-world skills while having an unforgettable experience.
Our four-week Leaders in Training (LIT) camp program is crafted to develop teens into well-rounded, productive adults. Using the resources of our 1000 acre estate in Northern New Jersey, LITs live together in a rustic smallcamp, with a multi-night Vagabond as a highlight of the experience.
Participants of the LIT and Internship programs are invited to further enhance the skills they have acquired during our specialized year-round summit opportunities.
One of our core values is care and respect for others. In the LIT, SYEP, and Internship programs, this value comes to light in the way we lead others. Training opportunities, professional development, coaching sessions, and workshops are modeled after our staff training program, deepened through leadership and work experience.
“This is going to be tough… and you can do it”
“With practice, you will get better”
These are a couple of our main messages at Trail Blazers and we mean what we say. Another one of our core values is care and respect for self. In our leadership programs, this entails looking ahead, setting goals, and making plans to get where we want to be this year, next year, and down the road.
As a Trail Blazers intern, we are going to expect a lot from you! At Trail Blazers, we collaborate, we ask, we try, and we persevere through challenges. We believe that we learn best when we try new things and challenge ourselves.
We value care for the environment. Our summer LIT and SYEP programs are immersive experiences in the outdoors that provide opportunities to reflect on the world around us, and to discover our role in protecting and shaping it. In our after school internship, we use environmental science activities and outdoor exploration to understand that even in an urban environment, all living and non-living things are connected.
We value care for community. Our leadership program brings this value into action –through discussions and needs assessments, our young leaders plan and implement projects to benefit their communities.
The Overnight Leaders in Training experience is grounded in our classic camp program. Young leaders will participate in a wide variety of camp activities while preparing for an exciting hiking trip. They will try everything camp has to offer while sharpening their hiking and backpacking skills for the ultimate Vagabond. This 4 night, 5 day adventure will take them through our 1000-acre camp property, down the Appalachian Trail, around the bike trails of Stokes State Forest, and canoeing downstream on the Delaware river!
Four Week Leadership ProgramLeaders-in-Training 1: June 28 – July 24
Leaders-in-Training 2: July 26 – August 21
Trail Blazers programs are offered on a tier basis, loosely linked to family income. Your tier is self-selected during the application process. If the price of the program remains out of reach for your family, even with your tier discount, please feel free to select the next tier level down. Additional scholarship funding is available to families for whom the Tier 1 price remains out of reach. Our aim is to make summer camp possible for all kids who are excited about Trail Blazers. We look forward to working with you to make this happen!
TIER 1 (Family Income up to $30,000 annually)
Leadership Program Tuition: $800
TIER 2 (Family Income $30,000-$60,000 annually)
Leadership Program Tuition: $800
TIER 3 (Family Income $60,000-$90,000 annually)
Leadership Program Tuition: $800
TIER 4 (Family Income over $90,000 annually)
Leadership Program Tuition: $800
FULL PRICE
Leadership Program Tuition: $800
Transportation is provided from Brooklyn NY and Newark, Elizabeth, and Paterson, NJ. A one-time annual fee of $50 per child will be added to each account during registration (not included above). If you are currently registered for a different Trail Blazers program, this fee may have already been paid.
Enrolling and Payment
You can sign your child up for camp with no payment required up front. We ask that payment is made within two weeks of registering in order to secure our child’s spot. Additional scholarship requests should be made by that time. Payment in full is due May 1.
During registration, you can set up an automatic payment plan or choose to make payments manually. Please email us at registration@trailblazers.org if you have questions or would like to discuss payment arrangements. If no payment is received within two weeks and we don’t receive communication from you within this time, we may move your child to the wait list. We’ll send you email reminders leading up to this point!
Program cancellation must be done 28 days prior to the first day of the program in order for a full refund to be considered. Program tuition may be refundable on a pro-rated basis, after the 28-day cancellation notice. During the busy summer months, please allow up to 3 months for refunds to be processed.
Please communicate with us if you have any needs or if extenuating circumstances arise. Whenever possible, we want to find a way to make things work as best we can for you.
Please note that in-person open houses are will not take place for the 2020 season. Information about virtual sessions is coming soon.
Join us at camp to get a taste of summer! After a welcome introduction and some drinks and snacks, you’ll be invited to join our staff and leadership campers for a full tour of camp. See what a small camp looks like, visit our program areas, and discover how much beauty the forest has to offer.
After tours we’ll enjoy a lunch buffet in the Great Hall, where you will get a chance to sample some typical meal offerings. After lunch, our staff and leadership campers will lead games and activities on the Great Lawn while parents can settle in for an extensive Q&A session with the directing team. Our aim is to provide an enjoyable day for you and your family where you are able to get all of your questions answered.
The program runs from 10am – 3pm at camp. You are welcome to drive up to camp on your own, or we will have a school bus leaving from our Brooklyn office that departs at 8am and returns by 6pm.
2020 Open House Dates:
Sunday, May 17 or Saturday, June 13
There is no cost to attend, and no limit to the number of family members who can come along. (We do charge $5 per person if you would like to travel up to camp with us by school bus.)
Please note – Camp is a rustic, outdoor environment. Getting around the trails and walkways of camp can be challenging for anyone who may be using crutches, a cane, a wheelchair, etc. If this is the case, let us know in advance and we will do our best to accommodate your camp visit.
New York City has suspended the Summer Youth Employment Program for 2020. We will not be accepting any SYEP participants this summer.
The Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) is the nation’s largest youth employment program, connecting NYC youth between the ages of 14 and 24 with career exploration opportunities and paid work experience each summer.
Participants have the opportunity to explore their interests and career pathways, develop workplace skills and engage in learning experiences that help in developing their social, civic and leadership skills.
By participating in structured project and work-based opportunities, NYC youth are better prepared for careers of the future.
At Trail Blazers, SYEP participants gain work experience in a day camp setting. Every day, they learn environmental science and outdoor skill basics and learn how to engage elementary school-age children through play-based, experiential approaches that are definitive of Trail Blazers, and learn to translate this knowledge and skills for future opportunities.
SYEP participants receive on the ground training and coaching from experienced Trail Blazers leaders every day, helping them to develop valuable professional skills they will utilize in any career pathway they may choose.
From the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development:
Thank you for your interest in the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). Unfortunately, the uncertainty over how COVID-19 will continue to affect social distancing guidelines, worksite availability, and provider and site staffing as we head into late spring and summer makes it difficult to ensure that SYEP can be operated safely and efficiently. Effective immediately SYEP has been suspended for Summer 2020
Learn more here.
Through environmental science and professional development, high school teens develop essential skills and experience that help them to succeed. Run concurrently with our UOS After School program, UOS After School Interns learn environmental science basics, learn how to engage elementary school-age children through environmental science and as well as the play-based, experiential approaches that are definitive of Trail Blazers, and learn to translate this knowledge and skills for future opportunities.
The internship is a semester-long program, currently only offered in the spring. Interns participate in our Brooklyn-based after school program two afternoons per week, as well as participate in four workshops that focus on developing professional skills, communication, building a child-care tool kit, and the development of resume and interview skills.
The Under One Sky Internship is divided into two components:
Under One Sky Workshifts
This is the part where you will gain on the ground, real work experience. You will be assigned one of our Under One Sky (UOS) after school locations, to provide support and assistance to the staff and make sure our after school campers are safe and having fun. During your workshifts, you will also receive weekly coaching from your site supervisor.
During these workshifts, your primary role is to support the program by:
- Providing homework assistance to elementary aged campers
- Playing games and singing songs with the campers
- Supporting the Group Leaders with preparing materials
- Being a kind and positive role model
You may be asked to help out by doing other tasks not on this list, such as making sure classrooms are tidy or helping with administrative tasks.
Professional Development Workshops
During the course of the internship, you will be required to attend 4 professional development workshops at the Trail Blazers Main Office (394 Rogers Avenue). These workshops will be led by leaders from the organization and other community members. They are designed to help you learn professional skills and knowledge that will help you during your work shifts and beyond.
Currently, this program is only available to students at the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism in Brooklyn. If you are a student or parent at this school and want to learn more, contact Jennifer Bombardier at jbombardier@trailblazers.org
Where does the internship take place?
Interns will be placed at one our current Under One Sky After School locations for the workshifts. Training workshops will take place at the Trail Blazers office at 394 Rogers Avenue or at your high school.
Will interns be paid?
Yes! This is real work experience and interns will receive a daily stipend plus a completion bonus for their hard work.
Who is eligible to participate?
Currently, this internship is only available to students at the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism but we hope to expand it soon.
In addition to being an AOHT student, you must:
- Be a current high school junior or senior in good academic standing.
- Have a positive attitude, be deeply kind, and have a strong
interest in working with young children. - Commit to 2 afternoons per week (Monday – Friday) for the
duration of the program plus 4 Thursday afternoon workshops.