Draft:The Princeton-Blairstown Center

• Comment: Most of the sources are to them or Princeton which are primary and not independent. S0091 (talk) 15:00, 11 September 2024 (UTC)

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The Princeton-Blairstown Center

Formation	1908
Type	Nonprofit Organization, Experiential Education
Headquarters	Hardwick, New Jersey, USA Princeton, New Jersey, USA
President & CEO	Pam Gregory
Affiliations	Accredited by the American Camp Association and the Association for Experiential Education
Website	https://princetonblairstown.org/
Formerly called	Princeton Summer Camp Princeton Education Center at Blairstown

The Princeton-Blairstown Center is an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that offers adventure-based, outdoor education to young people from historically marginalized communities, primarily Trenton, New Jersey, Newark, New Jersey, and Camden, New Jersey. The organization was among the first camps in the country to racially integrate and now serves nearly 6,000 youth and chaperones each year.

Location

The Blairstown campus is nestled on 268 acres (108 ha) of wilderness in Hardwick Township, New Jersey, approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Blairstown, New Jersey between the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and Newton, New Jersey. The Princeton-Blairstown Center administrative offices are located in Princeton, New Jersey.

History

The Princeton-Blairstown Center evolved from the Princeton Summer Camp, which was founded by Princeton University undergraduates and alumni in 1908. The organization’s formation coincided with the emergence of a camping movement across the country that was intended to positively influence the character of young boys. The mission of the Princeton Summer Camp was to enrich the lives of disadvantaged inner-city children through healthy, character-building camping experiences.

The Blairstown campus in Hardwick was purchased by Princeton University undergraduates in 1930. The original site was a hunting and fishing camp on 105 acres of timberland at Bass Lake. Students and alumni continued to operate the camp until the 1970s. The Blairstown campus also hosted the Princeton University football team for preseason training from 1949 to 1972.

Year-round “experiential education” was first offered in 1973. Approximately 2,300 campers participated in year-round programs, many through public and independent schools, in 1973. In 1975, the Princeton Summer Camp became the Princeton Education Center at Blairstown. The name of the organization was officially changed to the Princeton-Blairstown Center in 1991.

In 2013, the Princeton-Blairstown Center ended its 104-year financial and administrative ties with Princeton University. Although the Center is no longer affiliated with the University, students continue to assist Princeton-Blairstown Center with summer programs in Blairstown, and Blairstown hosts more than 100 first-year students annually through Princeton University’s Community Action program.

Racial Integration

At the onset of World War II Black youth were still excluded from Princeton Summer Camp. During this time, Francis Lyons “Frank” Broderick (Princeton University Class of 1943), Princeton Summer Camp Student Director and chairman of The Daily Princetonian, led a multi-year effort to advocate for integrating the camp. Broderick wrote three critical editorials about Princeton University’s admissions policies, calling for the University to face “the conflict between their principles and their practice.” A debate held in October of 1943 asked, “Should Negroes be admitted to Princeton?” Broderick and classmate C. Powell Whitehead argued that they should, while Lemuel C. Hutchins, President of the Princeton Senate, argued that they should not.

The Princeton Summer Camp closed in 1941 due to World War II and reopened in 1946 under Broderick’s leadership. He returned as Student Director as a graduate student, again advocating for the integration of the program. A group of eight Black youths were the first students to participate in the racially integrated program. Soon after, changes to Princeton University's admissions policies allowed racial integration.

Responding to Covid

The efforts of the Princeton-Blairstown Center were chronicled by the Wallace Foundation for adapting its programming to help young people overcome the isolation and difficult academic environment of the pandemic, while also supporting students who were dealing with serious traumas such as homelessness and domestic abuse.

Programs

The Princeton-Blairstown Center offers hands-on, outdoor programs that are designed to nurture social-emotional skills, promote engagement in self-discovery, increase environmental stewardship, and empower youth to drive positive change. These programs are offered to young people from historically marginalized communities.

Summer Bridge Program

This program addresses the “summer learning gap” by building skills like cooperation, communication, creativity, and critical thinking while cultivating supportive relationships. The program also includes hands-on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) activities. Approximately 120 young people and chaperones from various Trenton organizations participated in the Summer Bridge program in 2017.

Several former Princeton-Blairstown Center student facilitators have contributed articles to Camping Magazine to share their experiences with the Summer Bridge program: Ella Opdenberg, Mikhail Troyan, and Sam Scott.

Leader-in-Training Program

As the name implies, this program is designed to help rising high school juniors and seniors build leadership skills while reducing summer learning loss, building social-emotional skills, and gaining practical employment experience. Students must be nominated and accepted, and those who complete the program receive a $1,000 stipend.

Venture Out

This environmental education program is offered to middle school students in the Trenton Public School District. Aligned with the State of New Jersey’s science curriculum standards, Venture Out offers environmental education, social-emotional learning, and opportunities to explore STEM careers. Twenty students from Trenton’s STEMCivics Charter School participated in the Princeton-Blairstown Center’s Venture Out program to experience the eclipse on April 8, 2024 and gain a deeper understanding of the historic nature of this event.

Adventure Education

This adventure-based, outdoor education program, accredited by the Association of Experiential Education and the American Camp Association, employs evidence-based techniques and activities to develop leadership skills, build relationships, and facilitate collaboration. Adventure Education is held outdoors at the Blairstown campus.

Environmental Education

Fifteen environmental education programs are offered on subjects such as forest ecology, stream science, sustainability, ornithology, phenology and climate change, and geology. Programs are aligned with middle school curriculum standards and offer outdoor exploration to enable deeper engagement with science and nature.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

This program includes workshops that explore issues such as culture, identity, and belonging to enhance social awareness and civic engagement. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) programs are intended to help participants recognize and understand other perspectives, challenge their own views, and develop equitable solutions.

Recognition

Awards received in recent years by the Princeton-Blairstown Center include:

• New York Life Foundation Founder’s Award, 2018 (National Summer Learning Association)
• Community Impact Award, 2017 (VolunteerConnect)
• Harold Breene Youth Education Award, 2015 (American Camp Association New York & New Jersey)
• Mildred Trotman Community Service Award, 2014 (Pete Young Memorial Safe Streets Weekend)