Camps on Campus Celebrates 25 Years of Academic Enrichment Camps

Innovative. Exciting. Record-breaking. These three words describe UNC Charlotte’s Camps on Campus program.

Over the summer, a record 2,207 campers participated in the program’s 25th anniversary year. The campers, students in grades 1-12 from across the Charlotte-region explored everything from LEGO Robotics, to public speaking, musical theater, MedCamp and entrepreneurship, learning new skills and making new friends as part of the program’s 25th anniversary year.

Ken Burrows was the visionary behind this program, which launched in summer 2001 as a way to keep campus humming with activity throughout the summer. There were four weeks of camps initially, including the robotics camp. The next year, the program added a few overnight camps, and by 2004 some original campers became counselors for the program.

“Camps on Campus introduced me to robotics and coding, which sparked my passion for engineering, said Jaden Zinnah, a former camper and current current counselor-in-training. These experiences have helped shape me as a person by providing new learning opportunities and experiences.”

The counselor-in-training program, which gives experienced campers ages 14 to 17 the opportunity to shadow camp counselors as volunteers, started in 2006. By 2009, camp registration was fully digital.

In 2014, in an effort to enhance the program’s culture of friendship and good citizenship, the Niner Character Promise launched. The honor code encourages participants to treat fellow campers and staff with kindness, respect and cooperation in their words and actions; to seek help from others in resolving conflicts; and to respect the property of the University and others.

“At Camps on Campus I learned to believe in myself no matter what and to be proud of my interest in learning,” said Pariss Coleman, former camper and current instructional designer in the School of Professional Studies. “Today, I am happy to see that students have so many topics to choose from and that the camps are so well crafted to cater to what students are interested in.”

Camps on Campus reached 1,000 campers in 2015, and the program launched a crowdfunding campaign in 2023, to create scholarships, based on financial need, for campers to attend weeklong camps with meals included.

Now, in 2025, Camps on Camps offers more than 100 camps during an eight-week period; with 82% of camps having a waitlist. And this year, eight of the camp counselors were enrolled in summer courses at UNC Charlotte.

“Camps on Campus has grown tremendously, expanding its offerings to include year-round programs, new initiatives and even creating a mobile app,” said Taylor Faulkner, program director in the School of Professional Studies, who served as the Camps on Campus director from 2022 to spring of 2025. “What excites me most is the program’s ability to evolve while maintaining its heart — creating meaningful experiences for campers and staff.”

During the past 25 years, camp sessions have evolved (there is now an AI adventures camp), camp logistics have been streamlined and different directors have led the program to success. What hasn’t changed is the quality of camp offerings, caring camp staff and a commitment to providing campers an opportunity to experience life at UNC Charlotte in a safe, fun learning environment.

Camp Connections

The Camps on Campus program is more than just a series of enrichment camps for elementary, middle and high school students. It is a special place where connections are formed and nurtured, and a love for UNC Charlotte is born.

Tiffany McAfee ’06 and Andrew James ‘16 know this to be true.

McAfee became a camp counselor during summer 2004 as a UNC Charlotte undergraduate. A year later, she created and taught the musical theater camp. It is still going strong today, taught by one of her former campers.

“Creating and leading the musical theatre camp was one of the most meaningful parts of my time with Camps on Campus,” said McAfee. “I found it especially rewarding to combine my academic interests with youth education.”

In 2006, she was hired full time to support Summer School and Camps on Campus. She continued teaching camps until 2013, expanding her repertoire to include global dance, high school-level musical theatre and other movement-based camps. Today, McAfee serves as a program manager in the School of Professional Studies, where she still supports camps. She drives the 15-passenger van for field trips, helps with app updates, waitlists and schedules classroom space.

“Camps on Campus creates a welcoming environment that helps youth feel comfortable on a college campus at a young age,” said McAfee. “That early exposure can spark an interest in higher education and, in many cases, lead them to choose UNC Charlotte for college. There’s something really special about watching former campers return to campus years later as students, or even as camp staff.”

It was in musical theater camp where James, a then middle school camper, felt a spark for UNC Charlotte through his camp experience, and met McAfee, his camp instructor.

“I really enjoyed the musical theater camps,” said James. “Tiffany made it a welcoming and impactful experience for everyone regardless of their experience level with acting or singing.”

James then became a counselor-in-training and a camp counselor, graduated from UNC Charlotte and now works full-time for the University as a media relations specialist.

“Being a camp counselor was my first job, and one that I took very seriously,” said James. “I wanted to make sure that campers had the same great experience I had as a child, and I loved helping with Tiffany’s camps that I once attended as a camper. Personally, Camps on Campus opened my eyes to UNC Charlotte and made my decision to apply and attend the University an easy one.”

Both McAfee and James feel lucky to be part of Camps on Campus’ rich 25-year history at Charlotte and are proud of how the program has grown.

“Our camps are an amazing way for the community to experience everything UNC Charlotte has to offer,” said James. “Offerings cover a variety of topics and areas that bring so many different types of people together. Camps on Campus truly has something for everyone.”

Campus on Campus brought them together and kept them here to help a new generation of Niners make lasting connections.
“It’s incredible to reflect on how this program has been a throughline in my career,” said McAfee. “My journey with Camps on Campus has shaped not only my career path but my personal life in many ways. I feel lucky to still be part of something that means so much to so many people.”