Four New Camps Join Roster of Summer Programs
Four new summer programs join the ever-expanding roster of summer camps and pre-college programming. These new programs, which explore forensics, songwriting, sustainability, and business marketing, showcase diverse interests and continue to expand upon the past 40 years of summer programming at Saint Mary’s College. With faculty and staff support, new programs are developed each summer to pique students' interest and attract them to campus as a recruitment effort. New programs are created based on market demand and utilize the expertise of Saint Mary’s faculty program directors, who are topic experts in their fields.
James Rogers, professor of business administration, is the program director for the new Spark Business Marketing Institute offered to high school students this summer. During this program, students will learn how to bring their ideas for products or services to life and understand how product, price, placement, and promotion work together to make a successful for-profit or non-profit venture. On the program's final day, students will present their business plan and receive feedback from a group of female business leaders, some of whom are Saint Mary’s alumnae. “Encouraging young women to find their voice and vision while putting it forward genuinely, confidently, and professionally in a traditionally male-dominated industry is vital as most real-world markets are heavily influenced by marketing,” says Rogers.
Encouraging young women to find their voice and vision while putting it forward genuinely, confidently, and professionally in a traditionally male-dominated industry is vital as most real-world markets are heavily influenced by marketing.
– James Rogers
Professor of Business Administration & Program Director of the Spark Business Marketing Institute
All of the Saint Mary’s summer programs bring young women together in an environment where they can learn from each other and create meaningful friendships. Melissa Bialko, program director for the Sustainable Living Institute, understands the importance of combining an educational experience with the carefree fun of summer. “In planning the Sustainable Living Institute, we prioritized balancing college-level education with what we all love in a summer camp experience—fun, outdoor activities, and bonding,” Bialko said. “It was important to me to include the most crucial and trendy topics for students of high school age and synthesize those with core concepts from our regular Environmental Studies introductory course.”
A new Junior Forensic Science Camp and a Songwriting Camp have also been added to the roster of summer programs in 2024. After several summers of popular forensic camps, Saint Mary’s decided to add a junior-level forensic camp for students interested in participating. “There was a definite interest from the younger siblings of campers in the original Forensics Camp, so it was natural to offer a junior camp to the middle school-aged student. I believe it will help foster their interest in science and strengthen their problem-solving skills and critical thinking. There has also been a lot of interest from parents and guardians as well,” says faculty director Susan Skube. In addition, the new Songwriting Camp utilizes Saint Mary’s strong music program and faculty experts to allow students to make their own compositions.
Each new camp offered at Saint Mary’s incorporates the strengths of its pre-existing programs and dedicated faculty to ensure students have a positive and transformative experience. Saint Mary’s continues to improve and expand its summer programming year after year to attract the next generation of college students.
January 22, 2024
Learn More About Saint Mary's Summer Camps