CIT Camp
The Forest Floor Counselor in Training Program (CIT) is a great opportunity for youth who are ready to take that next step and join the world of nature connection mentoring. Our CIT program consists of an initial week of day camp, training in a small group setting where they will begin to learn the philosophy and practices of coyote mentoring. Once training is completed, participants will be asked to assist for two weeks during the summer where they will work closely with staff, setting personal goals in the field such as telling the story during morning circle, leading a game, starting a fire with a bow drill or any of our other nature connection practices and skills.
Benefits of participating in the Forest Floor CIT program:
- Being part of a team of your peers having fun and meeting challenges
- Learning the “behind the scenes” nuances of nature connection mentoring from experienced staff
- Learning about leadership and mentoring skills that you can apply in all areas of life and growing in self confidence
- Becoming a role model for younger kids
- Being part of a growing global community of nature connection mentors
Pre-requisites:
- Applicants must have completed at least two Forest Floor Summer Camp Programs or one of our Fall or Spring Homeschool Programs.
- Teens must personally complete an application AND be accepted into the program. Application can be found here: https://forms.gle/y5T3LUgiCsS3vmSGA
Location: Shope Creek drop-off & pick-up ONLY
Application: https://forms.gle/y5T3LUgiCsS3vmSGA
Ages: 14-17
Sessions:
June 17 – 21
Registration
Please pre-register each child separately with this form for the lottery by January 30th. Lottery notifications will be sent out January 31st, with registration windows opening February 1-5 with a limit of 2 camps per child. Open the toggle to read the full details below.
Open enrollment will begin February 6 with no limits and for those who did not register in the lottery.
New: Please separately reserve your spot(s) on the shuttle vans by adding them in the registration system. They show up as separate "camps" for each week. Open the toggle to read the full details below.
Camps fill fast. We offer payment plans and waitlists. Waitlists are activated frequently as family plans change. See which camps have open spots on our registration portal.
New Lottery Details
To help ease stress for both parents and administrators while lowering the number of families trying to access our registration system at the same time we are implementing a summer camp lottery and staggered registration system.
Lottery Sign-up Thru Jan. 30th
- Fill out the Lottery Form for EACH child you wish to enroll in summer camp.
- Deadline to submit your child’s name(s) for the lottery is Jan. 30th at midnight.
Lottery Registration Feb. 1st – 5th
- On the evening of Jan. 31st all lottery applicants will receive an email letting them know which day and time they’ll be given registration access.
- Registration access will come in the form of an email with a password that is good for that day.
- Thursday Feb. 1st begins the Lottery phase of registration.
- Families will be told specific time slots each day when registration will open to them.
- Each time slot will include a mix of returning families and new families.
- Once given access you can register ALL your kids at that time.
- During the Lottery phase of registration families are limited to 2 camps per child.
Open Enollment Begins Feb. 6th
- On Tuesday Feb. 6th we will transition from the Lottery phase to Open Enrollment, allowing anyone to register and removing the 2 camp per child limit. Families that didn’t sign-up for the Lottery by the Jan 30 deadline will have to wait until Open Enrollment to register for camp.
- If the camps you want are full, definitely sign up for that camps’ waitlist. We regularly have cancellations and pull from the waitlist, especially as we get closer to the start of summer.
New Shuttle Van Details
- Reserving a spot on our shuttle van is different this year.
- Shuttle vans provide transportation from our in-town location of Haw Creek Commons to our forested camp location of Shope Creek and back to Haw Creek Commons each day.
- The default drop-off/pick-up location for most camps (except Blacksmithing, Run Wild, and Boffing) will be directly at the camp location of Shope Creek.
- Shuttle van seats for each week of camp are listed as it’s own “camp” on the Camp Availability page.
- To save a seat in the shuttle van you MUST register for the Shuttle Van “camp” for each week of camp your child is attending at the same time you are registering for their actual camp.
- The Shuttle Van “camp” for each week will be clearly listed with the other camps for that week and will show if there are any seats still available.
- The Shuttle Van “camp” will have a waitlist available, but once the van is full we can’t guarantee more spots will open up and parents on the waitlist should be prepared to drop-off/pick-up at Shope Creek.
- If your child’s participation in camp is dependent on a seat in the van and the Shuttle Van is listed as full for a given week, we encourage parents to sign-up for a different week of camp.
Time: 8:45 am – 3:15 pm
Price: $360
- Monthly payment plans are available
- $100 non-refundable deposit due at registration
- Limited Partial Scholarships available (see below)
Why Choose Forest Floor?
We help children have fun, be healthy, and achieve their fullest potential with nature connection mentoring.
- Health benefits of nature connection
- Learn wilderness skills & traditional crafts
- Meet new friends and reunite with old ones
- Unforgettable adventures every day
- Skilled and caring mentors
- Exciting wilderness experiences
- Convenient in-town drop-off & pickup
- Boost long term cognitive & social development
Logistics
Drop-off/Pick-up Locations
This program takes place at Shope Creek Wilderness. You may drop-off and pick-up directly here at our forest location.
Van transportation from our intown location is NOT available.
Shope Creek Wilderness
472 Shope Creek Rd, Asheville, NC 28805
Times
Flexible Drop-off:
8:45 – 9:15 am at Shope Creek Wilderness
Flexible Pick-up:
2:45 – 3:15 pm at Shope Creek Wilderness
Clothing and Gear
Our programs are all-outdoors, with rain shelters available as needed. Children must arrive each morning fully prepared with a backpack, packed lunch, snack, full water bottle, and clothes appropriate for being out in the weather.
Scholarship Information
Overview
We offer limited partial scholarships to individuals who otherwise could not afford our programs.
Donate
If you are a family with means, please consider donating to our scholarship fund. Donations of a 1/4, 1/2, or FULL scholarship can be made during the standard registration process. For more substantial donations please contact us to discuss details.
Apply
Limited partial scholarships are available. Scholarship funds are generated exclusively from generosity of donations toward the scholarship fund. Scholarships are limited to the sum of these funds and are awarded based on equitable distribution. Full scholarships will be considered for families in great need, but most scholarship applicants should expect to pay at least half of tuition.
To apply for a scholarship FIRST please register for the program/camp, choose the payment plan option, and only pay a $100 deposit at time of registration.
AFTER RESERVING A SPOT, please follow the link below to fill out the application.
If your scholarship request can't be approved or isn't the amount of discount that you need, we will provide a full refund of the deposit.