As many as 90 North Park students are receiving $500 tuition grants by working at the camps, Olson says. The students benefit from the tuition break and are able to represent the university to campers, and the camps are better able to hire staff.
To receive the grants, students must attend school the year prior to the summer and return to classes the following year. Although most students attend the university, some attend North Park Theological Seminary.
“We like the idea of putting our students in camps,” Olson says. “It’s consistent with the values of the institution to be ministry oriented. It’s really helped camps. It gives them a pool of students to recruit from.”
Camps traditionally are unable to pay as well as other summer employment. The grants help students decide where they will work, says Tom Cousineau, Sr, executive director of Covenant Heights Camp and Conference Center in Estes Park, Colorado. “I think it makes just enough of a difference for the kids on whether they will work at the camps, or feel they have to work at McDonald’s because they have to earn more money.”
In addition to the financial assistance, “Students get to have an experience they might not otherwise have,” Olson says.
Recruiting for the school and presenting a better overall view of the denomination is another grant benefit. “It’s important that we have Covenant-connected kids,” Cousineau says.
“We think they provide great role models for the campers for what it means to be a North Park student,” Olson says. “Our desire is that they will be the best possible staff members of the camps they work at.”
Copyright © 2011 The Evangelical Covenant Church.
