Returning families: CLICK HERE for our UltraCamp registration site
OUTDOOR MASKS NOW OPTIONAL FOR UAS-hosted PROGRAMS* (Please review carefully!)
Effective immediately, the Squad is making masks optional--outdoors only--for programs that we host. We will remain fully masked during the indoor portions of our programs, with no exceptions. We request that all participants wear a KN95 or surgical mask for all indoor time. The Squad will provide these to any child who doesn’t have them.
We expect that we will continue to remain masked indoors through the summer, and that, unless local and state guidance on outdoor masking changes, we will continue to make masks optional when we are outdoors.
If this decision affects your ability to participate in future UAS programs, please notify us no later than Tuesday, April 5. If you paid a program fee, we can offer a full refund, and if you accessed a scholarship, we will offer your spot to another family. We are unable to offer any refunds for this reason after Tuesday, April 5.
*UAS will abide by the decisions of schools and community organizations who host our programs. For example, if a school requires masks outdoors, we will wear masks outdoors.
OUTDOOR MASKS NOW OPTIONAL FOR UAS-hosted PROGRAMS* (Please review carefully!)
Effective immediately, the Squad is making masks optional--outdoors only--for programs that we host. We will remain fully masked during the indoor portions of our programs, with no exceptions. We request that all participants wear a KN95 or surgical mask for all indoor time. The Squad will provide these to any child who doesn’t have them.
We expect that we will continue to remain masked indoors through the summer, and that, unless local and state guidance on outdoor masking changes, we will continue to make masks optional when we are outdoors.
If this decision affects your ability to participate in future UAS programs, please notify us no later than Tuesday, April 5. If you paid a program fee, we can offer a full refund, and if you accessed a scholarship, we will offer your spot to another family. We are unable to offer any refunds for this reason after Tuesday, April 5.
*UAS will abide by the decisions of schools and community organizations who host our programs. For example, if a school requires masks outdoors, we will wear masks outdoors.
SUMMER 2022 SCHEDULE
June 28-July 1 at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
Junior Ranger Adventure Squad
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 4-8: no program
July 11-15 at Christ Lutheran Church
Think Like a Tree!: An Introduction to Witness Trees
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 18-22 at Christ Lutheran Church
Know Your Forest, Know Yourself: Wilderness Survival Skills
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 25-29: no program
Aug. 1-5: no program
Aug. 8-12 at the Washington Youth Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum
Investigating Life Along the Anacostia River: Our Water, Our Land
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
Aug. 15-19 at the Washington Youth Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum
Investigating Life Along the Anacostia River: Protecting Wildlife in a Changing World
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
Aug. 22-26 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel
Mythology and Lore: Storytelling in the Great Outdoors
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION MUST BE PROVIDED
FOR CHILDREN ATTENDING SUMMER 2022 PROGRAMS
How to upload your child's vaccine card if you haven't already:
1. Log into your UltraCamp account: https://www.ultracamp.com/clientlogin.aspx?idCamp=996&campCode=lpa
2. Click the three bars to pull up the menu on the left-hand side of your screen
3. Click "My Account," then "Overview"
4. Under "Account Members," click your child's name
5. Click "Edit My Bio Information"
6. On that page, scroll all the way down until you see "COVID-19 VACCINE CARD"
7. Click browse and select the vaccine card photo from your computer to upload. Make sure the file format is an image file like .jpeg or .png, UltraCamp won't accept .pdf uploads.
8. Scroll to the bottom of the page and hit "SAVE"
9. You should get a green message saying "The action was completed successfully."
10. Do this for every child you have enrolled in UAS programs on or after April 11th
COST AND REFUND POLICY. $100 of your program fee is nonrefundable. We can issue a refund or accept cancellations until Friday, April 1. After April 1, refunds will be issued only if a household member has tested positive for COVID-19. With a doctor's note, we will issue your refund for the week. If UAS must cancel the entire week due to extreme weather or staff illness, we will offer the option for a credit on your account or a refund.
June 28-July 1 at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
Junior Ranger Adventure Squad
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 4-8: no program
July 11-15 at Christ Lutheran Church
Think Like a Tree!: An Introduction to Witness Trees
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 18-22 at Christ Lutheran Church
Know Your Forest, Know Yourself: Wilderness Survival Skills
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
July 25-29: no program
Aug. 1-5: no program
Aug. 8-12 at the Washington Youth Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum
Investigating Life Along the Anacostia River: Our Water, Our Land
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
Aug. 15-19 at the Washington Youth Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum
Investigating Life Along the Anacostia River: Protecting Wildlife in a Changing World
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
Aug. 22-26 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel
Mythology and Lore: Storytelling in the Great Outdoors
*This program is FULL and waitlisted
PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION MUST BE PROVIDED
FOR CHILDREN ATTENDING SUMMER 2022 PROGRAMS
How to upload your child's vaccine card if you haven't already:
1. Log into your UltraCamp account: https://www.ultracamp.com/clientlogin.aspx?idCamp=996&campCode=lpa
2. Click the three bars to pull up the menu on the left-hand side of your screen
3. Click "My Account," then "Overview"
4. Under "Account Members," click your child's name
5. Click "Edit My Bio Information"
6. On that page, scroll all the way down until you see "COVID-19 VACCINE CARD"
7. Click browse and select the vaccine card photo from your computer to upload. Make sure the file format is an image file like .jpeg or .png, UltraCamp won't accept .pdf uploads.
8. Scroll to the bottom of the page and hit "SAVE"
9. You should get a green message saying "The action was completed successfully."
10. Do this for every child you have enrolled in UAS programs on or after April 11th
COST AND REFUND POLICY. $100 of your program fee is nonrefundable. We can issue a refund or accept cancellations until Friday, April 1. After April 1, refunds will be issued only if a household member has tested positive for COVID-19. With a doctor's note, we will issue your refund for the week. If UAS must cancel the entire week due to extreme weather or staff illness, we will offer the option for a credit on your account or a refund.
SUMMER 2021
We ran five weeks of fully outdoor, masked, full-day programs this summer with our tiny staff of three: Elana Mintz, executive director, Christy Brock, director of programming, and Peter Merlo-Coyne, deputy director of programming. You can browse through our social media for photos and examples of outdoor learning--we're @UrbanAdvSquad on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter--and see how we:
-made field guides at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, recording our sightings of turtles, frogs, herons, hawks, lily pads, lotus flowers, catfish, and red-winged blackbirds;
-hiked up and down Rock Creek, making boats to learn about buoyancy, measuring the age of trees (we found one from the 1700s), and testing the water for pollutants;
-helped the staff of the National Arboretum's Washington Youth Garden harvest and process produce for donations;
solved an outdoor escape room created by BranchOut Parks at Tregaron Conservancy, using our observational skills and motivation to protect natural spaces.
We are indebted to everyone who helped make this summer happen, especially families who trusted us to care for and engage their children. (We had our highest-ever numbers of middle schoolers this summer!) We extend a huge shout out to them, to students who attended our programs, to high school volunteers, to donors, and to our education partners, including:
Anacostia Riverkeeper
BranchOut Parks
Casey Trees
Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
Friends of the National Arboretum/Washington Youth Garden
The Omni Shoreham Hotel
Tregaron Conservancy
Washington International School
Without access to bathrooms, water, and emergency shelter, we would not have been able to run full-day outdoor programs.
Learning and exploring outdoors is vital to our mental and physical wellbeing, and we couldn’t have done it without our community partners. We’re #StrongerTogether!