When Will Summer Camp Registration Open?
When to Open Registration:
Behind the Scenes
WonderKids launched in 2022 with support from Vermont Afterschool and quickly grew into a strong partnership with Orleans Southwest Supervisory Union. We love working alongside OSSU’s teachers, administrators, and school communities—and most of all, we love getting to serve the kids in our towns year-round, watching their creativity and confidence grow.
As part of state and federal funding guidelines, OSSU must periodically open a Request for Proposals for afterschool and summer enrichment programs, accept all bids, and then secure the funding to open a contract. Rural Arts is proud to have been selected as the service partner for the past two years. We are now preparing our proposal for Summer 2026 and the 2026–27 school year, hoping to be selected to provide the WonderKids Summer Enrichment Camp again this year.
Registration can’t open until the selection and budgeting process is completed by OSSU.
You can help! Fill out the form below to share your interest in participating and your experience with WonderKids. Your feedback helps both Rural Arts Collaborative and OSSU continue building strong, engaging enrichment opportunities for our students.
Interest and Testimonial Form
Frequently Asked Questions
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We’ve proposed starting July 6 and ending August 7, with camp running for five weeks.
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OSSU anticipates awarding the contract by March 18, 2026.
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If OSSU awards RAC the contract, we will open registration as soon as possible after we are notified. This could be as late as May, depending on the certainty of federal funding.
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We’re planning to return to the woods of Hardwick Trails, with basecamp behind Hazen Union in Hardwick.
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Applications for summer employment are open now! Go to www.ruralartsvt.org/employment to apply.
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RAC is a nonprofit organization, competing for grants and receiving private donations. When OSSU provides us a contract, we always augment the experience using our own funding. If we did not win this contract, we would use our grants and private donations to provide a similar, but smaller, summer camp experience.
Want to help support summer camp? Make a donation today!
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We call our camp teachers “Experts” because not all of them are artists, but they all have something great to teach our kids. Whether you are a sports coach, naturalist, bike enthusiast, visual artist, wood worker, or something else, we want to hear from you! Experts can earn up to $4,800 for a summer of teaching. Apply today at www.ruralartsvt.org/employment
