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Collegiate Students Plan Interactive Program for Local Youth

7/28/2017

Thirteen Collegiate School students, 11 rising 8th Graders and two rising sophomores, met last spring to design JUMP, a weeklong summer program filled with interactive games and activities, for 2nd and 3rd Graders enrolled in Peter Paul Development Center.

Some highlights of camp, which was held at Collegiate from July 24-28, included tag, rock wall climbing in the Estes Multipurpose Room, reading with buddies in the Lower School library and hosting a "Carnival Day" complete with multiple booths, tickets and prizes.

“The best part of the day was when the kids would get off the bus and your buddy would run to give you a hug,” said 8th Grader Emily Deskevich. “Or when you did an activity that made them smile, because it would make you smile.”

Planning and leading JUMP helps to develop Collegiate students’ leadership skills, says Farley Macdonald, Collegiate Middle School science teacher and program co-leader. By encouraging them to take risks, with guidance from faculty chaperones, students learn how to be more flexible and think creatively when original plans do not go according to script.

"The real magic of this camp is not about the fun games played or the activities planned. It's in the relationships built between the older and younger students,” he said.

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