Attending summer camps can be an effective way of preparing students for the diversity that lies ahead in the future. With the majority of the population at Granite Hills being Hispanic or Latino, it is a great way to give students the opportunity to meet kids with different backgrounds and cultures.

Brad Stailey, a Granite Hills student who attended the National Youth Forum on Medicine, recalled that he was the only student from Porterville who attended the event.

“There were people from New York, Texas, China, Guam, and many other places from all around the globe,” Stailey said.

Besides being given the chance to interact with students from all over the world, students also use summer camps as motivators to prompt their interests in certain subjects such as medicine or law.

Students gain access to resources and information at the summer camps that they would not obtain in their hometowns.

“We got see cadavers,” stated Stailey. “When else are you going to touch dead bodies?”

But not all summer camps are intended to give students a taste of the medical profession; Angelica Reyes, a senior at Granite Hills, attended UCLA’s Migrant Scholars Leadership Institute this summer where she experienced college life and received a grade.

At UCLA’s Migrant Scholars Leadership Institute, students were exposed to and discussed issues going on in society, got the “college feeling,” and attended classes taught by college professors.

“The camp’s main objective was exposure,” stated Reyes. “We need to get exposed and see what’s out there. Porterville is so small compared to LA.”

It is an irrefutable fact that summer camps can prove to beneficial for the college-oriented student, so, with that in mind, why aren’t more students attending?

In schools such as Granite, where the majority of students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, the answer always seems to be the same: money.

Summer camps can cost thousands of dollars, and with the economy as it is, students are forced to realize that they cannot compete with the students from private schools who would deem the cost of a summer camp as mere pocket change.

“Students don’t attend the camps because of money,” stated counselor Arlina Gillett. “But sometimes the company will offer scholarships at the student’s request.”

While several summer camps offer some sort of financial assistance, most do not.

“I have to work in the fields in the summer because I’m Mexican and have to help support my family,” said Victor Yanez, a junior at Granite. “There’s no way I would ever be able to go to the summer camps.”

Aside from the cost of attending camps, there still lurks another reason that keeps students away from these summer programs: awareness.

Students are not well informed about summer camps, and some are not even aware that summer camps exist.

While certain summer camps do require a nomination, others just require enrollment on the student’s part.

“I was never told about any summer camps,” said Mayra Puente, a junior at Granite. “If I had known I would have attended one.”

Gillett argues that the school does try to publicize the information through the school’s bulletin, but many students have physical education in the morning and are unable to hear the school bulletin and some students who have access to the school bulletin do not even pay attention to it.

The task of notifying the students of summer camps and other opportunities thus falls into the hands of teachers. Reyes was able to attend UCLA’s Migrant Scholars Leadership Institute thanks to a connection through her English teacher, Mr. Hackett.

“I met Mr. Handelsman through Mr. Hackett,” said Reyes. “And he was the one who nominated and helped me get into such a prestigious program.”

Regardless of the setbacks kids at Granite Hills face, students such as Reyes and Stailey are helping pave the way for future attendees from Granite by informing them and letting them know it is possible to attend even some of the most notable summer camps.

Learn More

National Youth Leadership Forum

Stanford Summer Programs