Strategic Plan2010 - 2012

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Our mission is to build caring,

confident youth and future leaders.

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Goal 1: Prepare future leaders for success in life

We will provide youth with high quality, outcome-rich, intensive programs.

We will work in partnership with organizations whose missions and goals are aligned with our own to better serve all youth.

We will provide youth with highly qualified, caring and rigorously trained staff.

We will incorporate a balance of enrichment and academic learning opportunities that develop the whole person.

Key Measure of Success: By 2012, 90% of youth report being able to plan ahead and make life choices.

Goal 2: Connect youth with nature to inspire growth, learning and healthy living

We will provide year-round learning opportunities for youth, families and the community at our camps.

We will provide youth with a progression of opportunities to experience nature.

We will teach youth to be good stewards of the environment.

We will engage youth in active, healthy experiences.

Key Measures of Success: By 2012, 75% of youth report healthy lifestyle behavior changes. By 2012, 85% of youth report placing value on helping the environment and nature.

Goal 3: Empower youth to be engaged in their communities

We will strengthen youths’ sense of community by providing programs within their community setting.

We will engage youth in research-based service-learning.

We will engage youth to be active participants and contributing members at all levels of Camp Fire – programs, policies and governance.

Key Measure of Success: By 2012, 85% of youth report that they are engaged and connected to their community.

Camp Fire USA Minnesota Council 2010 - 2012 Strategic Plan

Executive Summary

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The Community Need

While school plays an integral role in preparing our future leaders, it cannot stand alone as the sole learning environment for youth to realize success in life. Youth spend a significant 2,000 hours each year outside of the school day—the equivalent of a 40-hour work week. These hours are a critical time during which youth need the chance to be involved in experiences that keep their minds and bodies engaged. Without access to quality out-of-school time programs, youth may be left unequipped to navigate daily risky situations. The hours directly after school, between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m., present the most risk for youth. By engaging youth in high quality and high impact out-of-school time learning experiences, they can reap a lifetime of benefits that help them succeed on all fronts—socially, emotionally and academically. This impacts not only their future success, but also that of their families and communities.

To truly be prepared as future leaders, youth need out-of-school time experiences that rise to the level of quality. In recent years, the youth development field has grown to understand the importance of quality while working directly with youth and families. Specific elements are essential to ensure quality programs:

Measurable Impact: Programs are intentionally •designed to achieve specific outcomes.

Intensity and Progression: Programs engage youth •multiple days per week for one year or more.

Youth Voice: Adults are supportive of youth and •encourage authentic engagement.

Family Involvement: Families play an active role in •their child’s program participation.

Cultural Sensitivity: Programs are aware of and •responsive to youths’ cultural backgrounds.

Continual Program and Staff Improvement: Programs •have a high commitment to improve program quality through staff and program development.

These elements propel youth programs to a level of quality that significantly impacts the youth involved.

Yet, even as we know the importance of out-of-school time programs, many families face barriers that keep them from accessing these programs. Lack of transportation, limited finances, lack of culturally appropriate programs and family obligations can prevent youth from accessing programs. Overcoming these barriers to engaging youth is an important step toward eliminating the stark disparities we see in our region. When we are successful in this endeavor, more youth will be prepared to succeed in school and will advance on to receive a college degree. The whole community benefits as these future leaders are prepared to be an integral part of its success.

Goal 1:

Prepare Future Leaders for Success in Life

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Camp Fire Strategies for Preparing Future Leaders

“…Not only can afterschool and summer learning programs directly support academic success, but they can also equip students with the skills necessary to be effective learners and leaders.”

- Priscilla Little, Harvard Family Research Project By 2012, 90% of youth report being able to plan ahead and make life choices.

KeY MeASure OF SuCCeSS

Provide youth with high quality, outcome-rich, intensive programs.

Our programs will continue to be structured on •research-based, asset-building curricula.

Our programs will have built-in measures to •continually evaluate program quality and our impact on the youth we serve.

Our programs will offer an intensive experience by •meeting multiple hours per day and multiple days per week.

Our programs will include a progression of challenges •to meet the evolving interests and skills of the youth we serve.

Provide youth with highly qualified, caring and rigorously trained staff.

Our staff will undergo an in-depth hiring process to •ensure that they have a strong commitment to and understanding of youth development.

Our staff will receive ongoing, intensive training and •coaching that incorporates the latest research and best practices in youth development.

Our managers will utilize observational tools that •facilitate individualized training based on each staff person’s needs.

Work in partnership with organizations whose missions and goals are aligned with our own to better serve all youth.

Our partnerships will be based in clear, professional •expectations with opportunities to learn and share best practices.

Our partnerships will be designed to better serve •youth whose access to quality programs is limited.

Incorporate a balance of enrichment and educational learning opportunities that develop the whole person.

Our programs will offer youth experiences to learn •about themselves, their families, their communities, their environment and their futures.

Our programs will offer youth experiences to explore •their strengths and weaknesses.

Our programs will build on and encourage youths’ •academic learning by encouraging creative and engaged attitudes toward learning.

Our programs will provide youth opportunities to •explore future life choices.

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The Community Need

Youth today are finding less and less time to connect with nature as more of their lives are being spent plugged in to electronic media. Children between the ages of six months and six years spend an average of 1.5 hours a day with electronic media, and youth between the ages of 8 and 18 spend an average of 6.5 hours a day with electronic media—more than 45 hours a week. This is taking a toll on the health and wellness of today’s youth.

Connecting youth with nature is a uniquely powerful way of filling the need for healthy living while inspiring learning. The simple act of playing outdoors can increase creativity, reduce stress and lead to increased physical fitness. Additionally, outdoor education improves academic skills and helps to develop skills in problem solving, critical thinking and decision making.

Not only does the healthy development of youth depend, in part, on their connections with nature, so does the

healthy balance of our natural world. Our future leaders need hands-on experiences in nature to fully engage with it and to feel a responsibility to care for it. Being good stewards of the environment comes from learning a set of behaviors, but more importantly, it comes from a connection with nature that can only be acquired with quality, hands-on experiences.

experiences within nature can come in a mosaic of places: designated nature sites, public green spaces, school grounds and grassy backyards. These all have positive impacts on youth. Outdoor programs that bring youth together to enjoy the out-of-doors are especially powerful experiences. Youth who may not be comfortable venturing into a natural environment on their own become much more at ease when they do so within a nurturing group. These types of experiences inspire growth, learning and an attitude toward healthy living that can last a lifetime.

Goal 2:

Connect Youth with Nature to Inspire Growth, Learning and Healthy Living

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Provide year-round learning opportunities for youth, families and the community at our camps.

Our community programs will integrate opportunities •to experience nature at our camps.

Our outdoor programs will engage youth-serving •organizations and the broader community in outdoor learning opportunities at our camps.

Our facilities at Camp Tanadoona will be developed •into a fully-functioning, accessible, year-round educational and business venture.

Teach youth to be good stewards of the environment.

Our programs will help youth understand their •relationship with nature, their community and the environment.

Our programs will empower youth and families by •giving them the knowledge and tools to care for their environment.

Provide youth with a progression of opportunities to experience nature.

Our community programs will engage youth in hands-•on nature experiences within their everyday spaces.

Our outdoor programs will offer a progression of •experiences to suit different ages, skills and interests, from day-long sessions at camp to extended wilderness adventures.

Engage youth in active, healthy experiences.

Our programs will help youth and their families •understand the impacts of health and wellness in their daily lives.

Our programs will offer creative opportunities for •youth to learn through physical activities.

By 2012, 75% of youth report healthy lifestyle behavior changes.

By 2012, 85% of youth report placing value on helping the environment and nature.

KeY MeASureS OF SuCCeSS

“Natural spaces and materials stimulate children’s limitless imaginations and serve as the medium of inventiveness and creativity.”

- Robin Moore, Natural Learning Initiative

Camp Fire Strategies for Connecting Youth with Nature

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The Community Need

Youth are our most precious resource. When they are engaged in out-of-school time opportunities, it helps them understand and recognize that they are an invaluable asset to their community. They can see that they are not only future leaders, they can also be today’s leaders.

The best out-of-school time programs offer youth an environment where they are welcomed and encouraged to contribute within the group setting. Interacting with other youth in small groups, youth develop assets of leadership, problem-solving and teamwork that, when nurtured, grow into an understanding of how to relate to their larger community. Additionally, age-appropriate levels of “youth voice” are essential for truly engaging youth. This translates into a program where strong collaboration between peers and adult program leaders exists to identify goals and activities.

Service-learning is one established learning tool that combines all these elements and is a progressively challenging opportunity for older youth. It provides a

meaningful outlet for youth to apply the skills they have learned while expanding their engagement within their community. Meaningful community service is integrated with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities.

When youth address issues in their neighborhood through service-learning projects, the youth participants and the community benefit. Youth develop leadership skills as they identify and address issues facing their community. They also gain confidence and a sense of accomplishment as they realize the power they have to make positive, real changes. There are tangible benefits to the community as service projects translate, for example, into planting trees, caring for elders with visits and donating supplies to food shelves.

Youth who learn the power of serving their community first-hand gain a deep, lifelong appreciation for community work. They form the next generation of civically engaged community members and leaders.

Goal 3:

Empower Youth to Be Engaged in Their Communities

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Strengthen youths’ sense of community by providing programs within their community setting.

Our programs will incorporate and build upon existing •neighborhood resources in order to strengthen youths’ sense of community.

Our programs will seek opportunities to expand •youths’ sense of community through field trips and partnerships.

Our programs will encourage and support youths’ •contributions to their community.

Engage youth in research-based service-learning.

Our programs will invite youth to learn about and •identify community needs.

Our programs will engage youth in developing and •executing service-learning projects that respond to pressing community needs.

Our programs will provide youth the opportunity •to reflect on and measure the impact of their efforts, building critical civic engagement and leadership skills and experiences.

Engage youth to be active participants and contributing members at all levels of Camp Fire – programs, policies and governance.

Our programs will empower youth to take an active •role in their own learning in partnership with trained, caring adults.

Our organization will foster youth voice and decision •making in program development and organizational direction.

Our organization will seek opportunities to •incorporate youth voice in governing activities and decisions at the Council level.

Camp Fire Strategies for Youth Community Engagement

By 2012, 85% of youth will report that they are engaged and connected to their community.

KeY MeASure OF SuCCeSS“Young people want to be engaged as change-makers in their lives, their families and their communities.”

- Karen Pittman and Shanetta Martin, The Forum for Youth Investment

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Our Promise to the Community

We will deliver the highest quality programs for building caring, confident youth and future leaders.

We will efficiently leverage resources, expertise and dedication.

We will be accountable to our community by maintaining transparent and financially sound practices.

We will create an open and inviting relationship with the community.

We will measure and communicate our impact in the community.

“I have realized how important Camp Fire is to the kids. It is more than just a place to hang out after school: they have come to rely on it as a consistent and important part of their day.”

- Susan Gahan, club leader and licensed teacher

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Goal 1 - SourcesLittle, Priscilla, Christopher Wimer, & Heather Weiss. Afterschool programs in the 21st century: Their potential and what it takes to achieve it. Harvard Family Research Project,

2008. Bouffard, Suzanne & Priscilla Little. “Promoting quality through professional development: A framework for evaluation.” Issues and Opportunities in Out-of-School Time

Evaluation, 2004.Little, Priscilla. “Supporting Student Outcomes Through Expanded Learning Opportunities.” Harvard Family Research Project, 2009.National Institute on Out of School Time. “Making the case: A 2009 fact sheet on children and youth in out-of-school time.” 2009.

Goal 2 - SourcesRideout, Victoria, Ulla Foehr, Donald Roberts, and Mollyann Brodie. Kids & Media @ The New Millenium. Kaiser Family Foundation, 1999.White, Heather. Connecting Today’s Kids with Nature: A policy action plan. National Wildlife Foundation, 2008.Little, Priscilla, Christopher Wimer, & Heather Weiss. Afterschool programs in the 21st century: Their potential and what it takes to achieve it. Harvard Family Research Project,

2008. Pergrams, Oliver, and Patricia Zaradic. “Kids picking TV over trees.” The Nature Conservancy, 2007.Moore, Robin, quoted in Charles, Cheryl, Richard Louv, Lee Bodner, & Bill Guns. Children and Nature 2008: A report on the movement to reconnect children to the natural world.

Children & Nature Network, 2008.

Goal 3 - SourcesRoehlkepartain, Eugene. Benefits of Community-Based Service-Learning. Learn and Serve America’s National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, 2007.National Youth Leadership Council. Growing to Greatness 2004: The state of service-learning. National Service-Learning Clearinghouse, 2004.Weiss, Heather, Priscilla Little, & Suzanne Bouffard. “More than just being there: Balancing the participation equation.” New Directions for Youth Development, 2005.Pittman, Karen and Shanetta Martin. “Core priniciples for engaging young people in community change.” The Forum for Youth Investment, 2007.

We believe that children and youth are our most precious resource.

We believe that the best youth development occurs in small groups where children and youth are actively involved in creating their own learning.

We are inclusive, welcoming children, youth and adults regardless of race, religion, socioeconomic status, disability, sexual orientation or other aspect of diversity.

We believe in an approach to youth development that builds assets and empowers individuals.

We respect and celebrate nature.

We provide safe, fun and nurturing environments for children and youth.

Key Core Values

3100 West Lake Street, Suite 100Minneapolis, MN 55416

www.CampFireUSA-MN.org612 285 6255

The 2010 - 2012 Strategic Plan of Camp Fire USA Minnesota Council was approved by the Board of Directors on September 28, 2009.

We would like to thank all our supporters and funders along with the youth and families of our programs for inspiring us in our efforts to offer the highest quality programs.

Thank you to Matreks Printing for donating the printing and paper for this strategic plan.