Leadership in Training program teaches teens of all abilities new skills
“All of the participants had strong, natural empathy and great work ethics. They all genuinely loved helping campers and having the chance to learn new skills and try them in action.”
That’s how Pine Tree Camp’s Leadership in Training Program Leader, Tina Hall, described her experience with the teens she worked with during camp’s Leadership in Training (LIT) program this summer.
Pine Tree Camp’s LIT is a paid work-skill development program for teens of all abilities. This inclusive opportunity provides a pathway for high school students to work side-by-side with Pine Tree Camp counselors and program staff to develop leadership skills, gain hands-on work experience, create professional connections and prepare for future long-term employment.
Now heading into its fourth year, dozens of Maine youth have graduated from the program; helping grow the workforce at Pine Tree Camp and provide the opportunity for young people to learn job skills they can benefit from, no matter what they choose for a career.
“We took what we learned from prior years and developed a brand new curriculum, added more structure and opportunities for mentoring and role modeling,” Tina said. “LIT honed their natural skills and they quickly grew to a point where they were ready to work directly with campers.”
This year, 20 teenagers took part in the program and, for Pine Tree Camp Director, Dawn Willard-Robinson, it was rewarding to see how the enhanced curriculum created even stronger outcomes.
“The participants knew what to expect and had the opportunity to process what they’d learned at the end of each day,” Dawn said. “They were able to articulate what they learned and it gave them the chance to see they could take the next step and become staff.”
Many parents saw remarkable changes in their child at home as well.
“I had one parent say she witnessed a transformation in her daughter that left her speechless,” Dawn continued. “She told me ‘She walked in as a growing girl and came home a young woman with a new lens on life.’ That’s the greatest compliment we could ever receive and it was affirming to see how the years of hard work developing this program have paid off.”
For more information on the program or to apply follow this link.
