Important 2008 Summer Camp Information:

Registration - Begins April 21st at 9am, and continues M-F, 9am to 5 pm.  Registration is done on a first-come, first-served basis, with a waiting list beginning after 120 children have registered.  The fee for our six-week summer program is $180 for Bridgeport residents and $300 for non-residents.  Parents must complete a registration form, show proof of residence, and pay a NON-REFUNDABLE deposit of 50% of the camp fee at time of registration.  All camp balances must be paid in full by June 9, 2008.  Checks should made payable to: McGivney Community Center.

Extended Day Program - Extended Day is available only for the first 60 campers with working parents.  The program meets from 3:15 to 5 pm, and there is an additional cost of $75 per child.  Again, registration will be done on a first-come, first-served basis.

Day Camp Program - Camp meets daily from 8:30 to 3, and is open to any boys and girls entering grades 1-6 in the fall.  7th through 9th graders are only eligible to participate in the "Sparks" program (please see below).  Breakfast and lunch are provided every day, with the exception of a few days.  Every camper will receive a camp shirt.

"Sparks" Program - The "Sparks" program is for boys and girl entering 7th through 9th grades.  This program will focus on skill-building, community service projects, and team work.  Every youth enrolled in this program is required to participate in a week-long trip to the Washington, D.C. area.  There is an additional fee of $50, which includes all travel expenses and meals.  Travel Dates: July 20 - July 26.

 * All campers must submit a current physical exam record in order to attend camp.  Children will be unable to participate in camp with a physical form on file *

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Each summer, McGivney Community Center serves 120 children between the ages of 6 and 14 (students entering 1st – 9th grades in the fall). Led by a dedicated staff in a 15:3 ratio, campers participate in age-appropriate programs that are educational and also engage them in diverse social and cultural experiences.

A structured program, summer camp offers each camper free breakfast and lunch, a daily math class, as well as a daily literacy class that includes group reading of chapter books, character and plot discussion, and development of language skills. Members also participate in computer classes, arts and media classes, community service, as well as inside and outside recreational activities. Weekly field trips are scheduled which give children the opportunity to engage in a variety of fun learning activities throughout Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts. Past trips have included visits to local universities, the Bronx Zoo, the Basketball Hall of Fame, museums, and an annual trip to an amusement park.

Seventh and eighth graders participate in "Sparks", our Leadership Program. Working closely with the Leadership Director, these young people have an opportunity to develop their leadership skills through activities that foster personal growth, teamwork, and decision-making skills. The students also collectively choose a community involvement project and engage in that activity each week for the duration of the program. Past projects have included learning about the effects on the environment through a storm drain-stenciling project through Save the Sound, weekly visits to a local nursing home, serving meals at a local soup kitchen, and creating birdhouses for the Beardsley Zoo. For the second year in a row, we have added a week-long trip for our campers. Last year they visited historic sites in Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., and Maryland. This year they will visit historical and culturally significant sites in Boston, Cape Cod, and Newport .

During the summer, the McGivney Community Center conducts a Counselors-In-Training Program. This program offers 8-16 high school students an opportunity to shadow program staff in order to gain teaching and classroom management experience. Our motto at McGivney is “Children don’t come and go at McGivney, they come and grow”. Indeed many of our members begin attending McGivney at elementary school age, stay with us through high school, and undertake our Counselors-In-Training Program for 2-3 summers before becoming tutors and volunteers during our school year program.