STEAM summer camps expanded to disadvantaged neighborhoods, Mayor's office funding scholarships
The City of Sacramento has added two new locations for its STEAM summer camps after Mayor Darrell Steinberg asked that the program be expanded to sites in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
The new camps for first through sixth graders will begin July 20 at Johnston Park (231 Eleanor Ave.) and Max Baer Park (7851 35th Ave.). Sessions run through mid-August.
Registration is open, and you can sign up here. Space is limited, so don’t wait. STEAM camps cost $25 a week, but the Mayor’s office is funding scholarships for qualified families whose children will be attending the new camps. Click on the button below to find the application for financial aid.
The City is conducting neighborhood outreach around the two new camps, and all materials will be translated into Spanish and Hmong.
STEAM Camp in the original four parks began on July 6 and some spots are still open for later sessions. Camps are ongoing at East Portal Park, 1120 Rodeo Way; Garcia Bend Park, 7654 Pocket Road: North Natomas Regional Park, 2501 New Market Drive; and William Land Park, 12th Avenue and E. Park Road.
Mayor Steinberg called for the additional camps to be added as a step toward viewing every budget decision – large and small – through a racial and gender equity lens.
“If it is important enough to consider the climate and our environment as an essential lens in our public decision making, then it is equally important to consider the impact on people and neighborhoods that have been systematically disenfranchised and left behind,” Mayor Steinberg wrote in an oped in The Sacramento Bee.
Mario Lara, Director of the City’s Youth, Parks & Community Enrichment Department, said the STEAM Camps are a modified version of the City’s Summer Oasis program, with changes made to lessen the risk of Covid-19.
“So far the experience has been great,” Lara said. “This is the first week that we’ve been doing it, and I’ve visited several sites. Just having kids being able to interact and be among their peers in a safe environment is good for the kids and the parents.”
Lara said the children attending STEAM camps are staying together in small cohesive cohorts, to limit potential exposure. They’re doing all of their activities outdoors, washing their hands frequently and maintaining a safe physical distance.
STEAM camps incorporate science, technology and arts education through fun activities. “We call it disguised learning,” Lara said. “It’s a lot of recreational activities infused with science and arts.”
The City’s Youth, Parks and Community Enrichment (YPCE) department is also offering other virtual and in-person summer opportunities, including free camps at community centers around the city. Find out more here.
