Checking on camps to make sure they don't have licensing violations

[Anonymous]

There's a comment on a thread noting licensing violations at one of the YMCA camps. So, I'm wondering how you can check up on camps to see if they have violations? We're in Maryland. I've tried quite a few google searches but can't get to the right place. Thanks for any info.

[Anonymous]

Welcome to the wonderful world of summer camps. They are not like daycare centers which have licensing and oversight. You have to call and ask what their individual policies are about hiring. What their injury rates are. And whatever else you are interested in. There are some accrediting bodies that have specific requirements. So you can look for camps with those credentials. I can tell you that 4 to 5 years ago I called a well known day camp with multiple locations and asked if they did specific background checks on their counselors. The director responded to my inquiry and said that the adults working with kids at one of the locations were screened. No one at any of the other locations were screened. Also, 4 to 5 years ago, I called a well known county's parks and recs summer camp department and asked about the hiring and screening process for summer camps. I was told that FT parks and rec employees were screened. However, no one who was PT or seasonal was screened and they couldn't guarantee that any of the third party providers were screened.

[Anonymous]

As parents we have diligent about finding out about exactly who we are entrusting our kids to for an afternoon or day or 1 week session at camp. I came across this blog article that gives tips on what kind of questions to ask when considering camps. One of them has to do with background checks and screening, but the author discusses other subtle signs to look out for when making the decision about kids camps.

http://www.campgurus.com/blog/