by Jackie Zhang, Staff Writer, June 2022
During the summer, Nobles is equally as active as it is during the school year. Two of the major programs that will take place on campus are the Nobles Day Camp and Achieve Program. According to its online mission statement, Nobles Day Camp is a fun summer program where campers develop life skills through activities that help them build independence and self-confidence. The Achieve Program, according to its website, provides academic and enrichment experiences, creating mentoring relationships that help students from underserved Boston communities learn and develop confidence.
Assistant Director of Nobles Day Camp Gary Ross described the itinerary for the campers. He said, “On a typical morning, each group has a swim instruction period and then they get to choose from an assortment of activities. In the afternoon, there is another swim instruction period and continued activities, and these activities, such as sports and arts, allow campers to explore their passions.” Campers range from Pre-K to highschoolers and are divided into groups based on age. Ross says that older campers in the eighth and ninth grades engage on trips out of campus to encourage independence and responsibility.
“We are a part of the Nobles community and we will try to follow that and create a sense of belonging for campers and staff,” Ross said, “We have staff that are veterans of the camp, meaning they were campers before. The members really enjoy being a part of the Nobles community and believe in the values of the community and school.”
“I’ve been both a student and a camper for a while, and what I’ve come to notice is that Nobles feels completely different in the summer than during the school year,” Tommy Reynolds (Class I) said. “You’re working with younger kids in the fourth or fifth grade and we’re outside and it’s a completely different feeling. Even though I’m in the same physical space, the lack of academics and stress makes it feel so different.”
The Achieve Program takes place on campus around the same time that Nobles Day Camp does. “On a typical day, students get picked up near their house, by a bus and get dropped off at Nobles,” Executive Director of Achieve Reginald Toussaint said, “We have our opening meeting first, which is like assembly at Nobles. They will have three academic sections and lunch and then the enrichment activities. The students could go to a club or to spend time in the Omni in the afternoon.”
Achieve students are recruited in sixth grade and are currently seventh and eighth graders. After staying with the program for three summers, these students graduate. Oftentimes, Nobles faculty, especially Nobles middle school teachers, assist with teaching the Achieve students. This summer, Touissant said that Mathematics Faculty Efe Osifo and Science Faculty Regina Campbell-Malone will be volunteering to teach for the program.
Toussaint described his hopes for the future of Achieve. He said, “I hope that as time goes on that Achieve is much more integrated into the mind of a typical Nobles student and staff member. Achieve is Nobles, and we don’t meet during the regular school day, but an Achieve kid is a Nobles kid. I hope I can create greater connections and have much more integrated programs with Nobles by having more chances for people to volunteer.”
Both Nobles Day Camp and Achieve are crucial parts of the Nobles community that should be recognized as such. They both assist in promoting leadership, creativity, and enrichment outside of the typical academic school year. The programs and learning that occur over Nobles during the summer deserve more attention and connectivity with Nobles students. Nobles Day Camp and Achieve are both programs that will give greater insight into the wider community of the school as a whole. Students should ask themselves how they can involve themselves and assist with the greater Nobles community.
