John Dockendorf has had a long life of studying the great outdoors, and how they can relate to students and adolescents alike. Once a native of Baltimore, he knew at an early age that life would take him down a different path. After much deliberation, he set off to the University of Vermont, where he would also pick up skiing. He had focused most of his time on his studies, eventually graduating in 1981 with full honors – something that made him extremely well known amongst the professors of the school. Dockendorf had learned to appreciate the faculty, and would often spend his time assisting professors.
After earning a Master of Management in Hospitality from Cornell, he opened the Adventure Treks and Camp Pinnacle programs. Camp Pinnacle is a legacy summer camp that was founded in 1928 but closed in 2010. Partnering with the Baskin family, they spent 10 years restoring the camp to its former glory. As of 2021, John retired, handed the reins to Steve Baskin, and directors Fayssoux and J G Moss.
The Global Impact That Youth Adventure Programs Can Have
John Dockendorfs greatest accomplishment was the creation of the Adventure Treks program. With over 70 educators and a staff of full-time loyal employees, the program was open even during the 2020 pandemic. The program has a long-standing reputation for being one of the finest outdoor programs for young students across the country. This same model can be extrapolated for a more global scale, and John Dockendorf knows Adventure Treks has shown the way towards summer camp development in other countries, especially Canada, making this type of program more accessible to many people throughout the world.
Australia is one such place where the question becomes, “can summer camps even become a thing?” Firstly, Australia is in the southern hemisphere, so summer camps are already at a disadvantage. Although most regions are warm throughout most of the year, “summer” in Australia is really the winter. This is why the winter months (May, June, July) in Australia are usually spent more indoors or with family in a traditional way.
Secondly, Australian schools are divided into separate terms, with a break in between. While higher education follows a more common path that is well-known in the west, elementary and secondary school is broken up into terms, (or semesters, as commonly known in the US). The first term begins in January and ends in April, while the second term begins in July and ends in September. This means that “summer” camp can only occur between May-June and Oct-Dec. While the seasons may be different, holidays such as Christmas are still observed in December.
The Australian Verdict on Summer Camps
While not as big in America, certain programs in Australia still cater to different ages and for different periods of time. While it is common to send kids and adolescents away for many weeks on overnight excursions in the United States, Australian summer camps are usually booked by the day or week during the off periods of school without nearly the level of parent commitment that one has in the states.Thus, there is an incredible opportunity for “summer camps” in Australia and the tremendous benefits summer camps provide kids are as needed by Australian kids as by American kids. The seasonality of camping, coupled with the high price of real estate and the relative aridity of Australia do present challenges for building a huge summer camp infrastructure. The Adventure treks model of small group camping trips may actually be a more cost effective way to fit the summer camp needs of Australian youth!
