What mistakes have you made in the past and what do you do now? It was very hard not to just hire a person after an interview and checking were warm, bubbly had all the right answers—but now we talk it out make sure we see them with the group of staff we already have, try to see what they are bringing to the table. Making sure we didn’t over/under staff – with numbers rolling in until the first day of camp (or later) having enough but not too much staff is always a challenge Now –we work much harder on making sure of the what each staff member can do/help/bring to camp—our overall goal is once orientation is over each staff member is able to manage the group, work out when things aren’t going the right way and improvise as needed. Johanna jsievers@jcys.org I use a lot of high school students for camp counselors. I always email the Guidance Counselors at all the local high schools in the area for them to distribute to students and to hang flyers in the schools. For interviews I always do one on one. I like to throw in a fun question to help them relax and also to really make them think! My favorite two are: If you were a crayon, what color would you be and why? If you came with a warning label, what would it say? – this one always stumps them! Angela Angelar@limerickpa.org Where are the best places to find quality staff applicants? In the past, we have just walk in s or advertised on our website. We are looking to do a job fair this spring. We have used the local colleges as I typically like to hire education majors. How do you run your interviews (one-on-one, panel or group)
What mistakes have you made in the past and what do you do now? It was very hard not to just hire a person after an interview and checking were warm, bubbly had all the right answers—but now we talk it out make sure we see them with the group of staff we already have, try to see what they are bringing to the table. Making sure we didn’t over/under staff – with numbers rolling in until the first day of camp (or later) having enough but not too much staff is always a challenge Now –we work much harder on making sure of the what each staff member can do/help/bring to camp—our overall goal is once orientation is over each staff member is able to manage the group, work out when things aren’t going the right way and improvise as needed. Johanna jsievers@jcys.org I use a lot of high school students for camp counselors. I always email the Guidance Counselors at all the local high schools in the area for them to distribute to students and to hang flyers in the schools. For interviews I always do one on one. I like to throw in a fun question to help them relax and also to really make them think! My favorite two are: If you were a crayon, what color would you be and why? If you came with a warning label, what would it say? – this one always stumps them! Angela Angelar@limerickpa.org Where are the best places to find quality staff applicants? In the past, we have just walk in s or advertised on our website. We are looking to do a job fair this spring. We have used the local colleges as I typically like to hire education majors. How do you run your interviews (one-on-one, panel or group)
summer-camp-hiring-roundtable.docx