Representative from 65 camps looking for summer employees at job fair today

With summer only a few months away, 65 summer camps from around the country are coming to IU seeking counselors, lifeguards and activity coordinators to employ. Job opportunities and summer internships are available through the 47th annual Summer Camp Job Fair.\nThe fair, sponsored by the Career Development Center and Arts and Sciences Career Services, will be held from noon to 3 p.m. today in Alumni Hall of the Indiana Memorial Union.\nThe event is open to IU Bloomington students and staff and city residents. The event is free for all to attend. \n“Everyone’s invited; it’s not just available to IU students and Bloomington. We’ve sent out publicity letters to universities all over the state, inviting them all to come,” said Dena Roberts, the event planning intern responsible for marketing and advertising.\n“We’re mostly targeting freshmen and sophomores, but there are some internship opportunities available,” Roberts said. “Mostly, it’s work experience.”\nAll majors and fields of study are encouraged to attend. \n“Students will gain responsibility and counseling skills if they do work at a summer camp for a summer,” Roberts said. “Working with kids and being in charge of people will make you a better leader.”\nFreshman Melanie Frank, a sociology major, plans to attend the job fair because she has “gone to the same camp for 11 years and want(s) a change of scenery.” \n“I’d like to work with kids in a different age group than I’ve worked with before,” Frank said. “It’d be interesting to work with kids from a different part of the country, too.”\nErin Erwin, assistant director at the Career Development Center, said many camps involved will collaborate with students to turn their experiences as counselors into internships at the camps. \n“Many students want an internship, so the camps work with them, adding extra responsibilities and tasks to give it a more internship feel,” she said.\nThe types of camps presented at the fair include day camps, traditional residential summer camps, adventure-oriented camps, camps for children with special needs, religiously based camps and camps for children of disadvantaged backgrounds.\n“This is a great event, with over 60 employers and hundreds and hundreds of job opportunities,” Erwin said. “Students can make money, not worry about housing for the summer, make long-term friendships and develop skills that will make them more marketable to future employers.”\nThe Summer Camp Job Fair also includes a raffle every hour, including a $150 voucher from STA Travel. Bike prizes, gift certificates from Dick’s Sporting Goods and IU Outdoor Adventures vouchers will also be up for raffle, Roberts said.