LYNX Camp 2022 Highlights and Recap

LYNX Camp 2022 truly embodied the spirit of the College of Media & Media, the Lynx Leaders, instructors, and of course, the campers, who have always made the annual arts and media summer camps a special experience for young creatives. We returned to our pre-pandemic format for LYNX Camp 2022, which had it's fair share of challenges, but our campers were able to pivot seamlessly.

All camps were held in-person and we were able to return to the Residential option for our two-week camps. We offered eight different programs were offered this summer–– 2D Animation/Illustration, Audio Production/Ableton Live, Comic Book Character Design, Mural Creation, Photography, Music Industry, Animation & Character Creation, and Filmmaking.

The 2022 LYNX Camps hosted a total of 262 students over 3 Sessions and 8 academic programs. That is an increase from 226 students last summer. We had students from 21 different states and one student from Mexico, and another from Sweden! LYNX Camp continues to grow in popularity around the country and even the globe!

2022 By the Numbers

Programs & Student Work

The Photography campers had quite the week! The campers visited the Emmanuel Gallery (located on the Auraria Campus) and made a trip to the Denver Art Museum. The campers also learned the in's and out's of splash photography and portrait photography. This camp was led by instructor Shana Thompson-Cruz and teaching instructor Emily Owens.

Testimonials

WHAT CAMPERS ARE SAYING:

• "I really enjoyed being able to work all day on what I love to do. I feel like I was really able to develop my skills in drawing characters!"

• "Incredibly enlightening, I've learned a lot about animation and surprisingly, about myself."

• "Literally the best time of my entire life. Like being surrounded by so many people with so much talent and passion for music and compassion for other people was truly a breath of fresh air."
  

• ?I absolutely loved it everyone was super nice and helpful they include everyone in every activity and they really made camp a fun experience and I couldn’t of asked for anything better."

• "The LYNX Camp experience was better than I thought it would be when I first came in here. The teachers and TA's were very helpful and nice about things. The projects we did were also pretty fun."

• "It was good and definitely was valuable as far as experiences go both socially, realistically in the film world and getting to see art with speakers, museums and meow wolf. Viewing all types of art as an artist is really valuable."

WHAT PARENTS ARE SAYING:

• "This camp was inspirational and fun. My student wants to participate again next year and is now interested in the college program after HS."

• "Amazing, he was so excited after camp every day, made lots of friends and learned a lot."

• "The inclusive culture created by the camp instructors and admin was palpable. It wasn't just talk...they walked the walk."

• "One of the counselors helped my kid with some art tips and made her feel more confident."

• "Transformational! My daughter had a wonderful experience last summer but getting the chance to be a residential student gave her many gifts. She was able to experience dorm life and make new friends. She also learned responsibility in practicing time management, accountability to her team, and being in “charge” of herself."

Scholarships

In order to allow access to all students no matter their economic background, LYNX Camp awards scholarships to families with need. This year the LYNX Camps awarded 139 scholarships (54% of the camp population) plus offered multiple forms of additional discounts. Much of the scholarship money awarded comes from our generous donations and partnerships in the community. This year’s LYNX Camp received around $86,650 from our partner programs and donations. LYNX Camps partner with the following organizations to be sure to reach students who might not normally have access to these types of camps: DPS CareerConnect, Minds Matter, & College Track. This year our largest donors in scholarship funding were the Colorado Film Commission,  Denver Arts and Venues, and individual Ralph Nagel. Even small donations add up to help us provide scholarships to students!

Surveys & Data

LYNX Camp consistently receives extremely positive feedback from both students and parents and this year was no different. 

Camp Photos: ​This year’s camp photos can be seen on our ​Facebook​ or​ Instagram page​.