Camp Hilltop Staff
One of the keys to Hilltop's success is our staff. We take pride in the valuable people we hire. They are the most important people to our families, our campers and to us. We recruit counselors who are college age and above, as well as graduate students and teachers for our Senior Staff positions. The average age of the Hilltop staff is twenty-three.
Hilltop is an international environment both in campers and staff. Our staff comes from around the world, including; the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, and other countries. No matter where Hilltop's staff are originally from, they have a desire to have a positive impact on children, have specialized skills and have what we feel it takes to be a great camp counselor.
All Hilltop staff members go through an extensive application and interview process. We provide an in-depth, weeklong orientation prior to campers’ arrival and work with them throughout the summer.
Hilltop has a high rate of amazing counselors returning each summer, to the delight of our campers and families.
2011 Staff Profile
Here is a sample of some of the amazing counselors we have lined up for the 2011 camp season.
Sara - Age: 23 Hometown/Country: Montclair, New Jersey, USA
School/University: I have just completed my undergraduate degree from Syracuse University in Secondary English Education. I am hoping to teach high school English. Interesting fact about myself: I have been published in an English literary magazine. My story was about my experiences at Camp Hilltop and how that prepared me for a four-month trip to London. Experience with kids: This will be my fourth year as a Hilltop counselor. I have also been a lifeguard and swim instructor for seven years where I have taught swim lessons for individuals between the ages of four and more than seventy. Why I want to be a camp counselor: My life has been undeniably shaped for the better by the counselors I had as a child at Camp Hilltop. I have seen firsthand the incredible experience summer camp can be for a child, and hope to give many of you the fantastic experience I was fortunate to receive year after year. Why I choose to work at Hilltop: The Youngs have created an atmosphere where growth and personal development is inevitable. They carefully choose staff that support campers and encourage them to be themselves, not conform to pressures or norms. Hilltop is a family-run organization that treats every camper and staff member with respect and holds everyone in high esteem. Camp Hilltop has become my second home. After begging my parents to allow me to become a camper at the age of five, I haven’t been able to turn away.
Nicola - Age: 25 Hometown/Country: Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, UK
Current job: Graduate in Travel Management 2.1 BA Hons. I am currently working for a Gap Year Travel Company based in the UK. Interesting fact about myself: I have traveled quite a bit around the States, Canada, Europe, Australia and Africa. I also spent a year working in New Jersey for my graduate placement. I love meeting new people, making friends and learning about new cultures. Experience with kids: I recently volunteered at a community volunteer project in Kenya and lived in the local community. I taught sports and played games with the local children with very limited resources. It was definitely an eye-opener to see how children live in an underprivileged country. For my Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award, I volunteered at my local village Brownies for eight to eleven year olds where I taught arts and crafts, games, singing, sports and music. Between college and university, I taught arts and crafts at my village summer day camp for six to twelve year olds. I have babysat since I was 15 years old and I regularly baby-sit for a family who has two young boys aged seven and ten years old. Why I want to be a camp counselor: I have always been interested in teaching, and so I thought what better experience to get, than to spend a few months working abroad teaching. As said previously, I love meeting new people and learning about new cultures so I hope that my summer working at Hilltop will fulfill my passions. Why I choose to work at Hilltop: The camp looks amazing! It looks like the most wonderful place to spend my summer; my only regret is not finding it before now!
Kat - Age: 21 _Hometown/Country: Montrose, Scotland
School/University: Studying BSc (Hons) Sports & Exercise Science at Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, UK. Interesting fact about myself: I have been a sport fanatic most of my life taking part in all kinds of sports, especially Football. Just a few years ago, I was selected to play for the Scotland U17s squad where I traveled abroad to play other countries. Experience with kids: This will be my second summer at Camp Hilltop, where I worked as a counselor during the summer of 2009. Prior to this, I have been a football coach for the past four years, working with kids of all ages and just recently becoming a tennis coach where I have had the opportunity to work with younger kids to teach them some basic skills. As well as this, I have a personal trainer qualification, which allows me to work in a gym specifically designed for children aged eight - fourteen, which I did for two years. Why I want to be a camp counselor: After the summer I had last year working with the kids alongside the Young family and other counselors, it was an experience I will never forget. The opportunities for the campers were endless; they were able to take part in activities they wouldn’t necessarily have the opportunity to do, make new friends and develop as an individual. As a camp counselor, I was able to be a part of this and help the campers achieve what they wanted out of their summer. Although camp can be challenging at times for the staff, it is also a very satisfying role and you will not want to spend your summer anywhere else! Why I choose to work at Hilltop: Working at Hilltop is an amazing experience where you can learn as much from the kids as they can from you. The Young family has created a close-knit environment that keeps the kids safe and the staff at ease, especially through the initial getting-started process. You will meet special people at Hilltop that will influence your lives in the best ways possible and for these reasons alone you will have a summer of a lifetime.
Mark - Age: 22 Hometown/Country: Newmilns, Aryshire, Scotland
School/University: University of Stirling, will have graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Marine Biology by the time I get to camp Interesting fact about myself: I love to scuba dive and have dived in Mexico and Spain and when I travel to the Dutch Antilles to work with turtles after camp, I hope to be able to get some dive time in when I am there. Experience with kids: I have taught swimming to children from the age of three to seventeen for the past four years and enjoy it greatly. I also have a younger brother who is only eight, so I have experience looking after him directly. Why I want to be a Camp Counselor: Being a camp counselor is a huge responsibility as the campers look up to you, but it is also highly rewarding. It feels great when you help a child overcome a fear or learn a new skill and camp allows you to do this on a large scale. Why I choose to work at Hilltop: I first joined Hilltop in summer '08 and it was amazing, I looked at the website and saw that it encompassed everything that I thought a summer camp should and so I decided there and then that Hilltop was for me. The Youngs made the experience so fun and exciting for me, and the campers were just great and made you feel you fitted in right away, and so when I decided to return there was no question that it had to be Hilltop!
Jo - Age: 26 Hometown/Country: Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Current Job: I am working as a teacher of Physical Education at a High School in Glasgow. Interesting fact about myself: When I was thirteen, I played for a girls' soccer team. It was an exciting time as scouts from the Scotland Youth squad were coming to see us all play, unfortunately I fractured my wrist the day before the trials and missed out on my spot! Experience with kids: I have been working with kids since age fourteen, where I was a Brigader in the Girls' Brigade in Glasgow. Due to my degree and current job, I have lots of experience in working with children in a sporting and educational setting. At my school, I currently coach the girls' football (soccer) team and also take part in the running club. I have also been a counselor at Hilltop for the past two years. Why I want to be a camp counselor: I want to be a camp counselor because I love working with children, it could be because I really am a big kid at heart and refuse to resign myself to the fact that I really am getting older (grey hairs are appearing!). I have learned so much from my time at Hilltop and am always growing in confidence and skills which I want to share with the campers. Why I choose to work at Hilltop: Initially, when I decided to apply to be a camp counselor in America, I planned to do it once, tick it off on my 'things to do' list and then move on . . . 2010 will now be my third summer at Hilltop! What can I say — the staff is the best you will find — dedicated, caring, loyal to the campers and skilled in different areas of the program. The camp setting is beautiful; I love waking up in the morning and looking out (even when it's raining!). And finally, the Youngs are extremely supportive of both staff and campers. I always wondered why I wasn't homesick the first year I got to camp but it's because I was made to feel so welcome, part of the Hilltop family and that's why I keep coming back.
Amber - Age: 23 Hometown/Country: Gaylord, Michigan, USA
School/University: Central Michigan University, Elementary Education concentration with a special education endorsement, middle level education endorsement, Integrated Science Minor. Interesting fact about myself: Two summers ago I was a teacher at a bilingual school in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Experience with kids: I have been substitute teaching for the past two years at all grade levels. I also just completed sixteen weeks of student teaching with ninth through twelfth graders. I also was a counselor at a one-week summer day camp for seventh grade students last summer. I have also spent a number of hours volunteering at local schools. Why I want to be a camp counselor: I remember going to camp in sixth grade and loving it! I want to be part of a great experience for another young person. Why I choose to work at Hilltop: When looking at the information on the website, Camp Hilltop looked like a great place to be. Their philosophies are similar to the way I feel about children in an educational setting, it just seemed like a great match!
