The list below is long because the review was honest. Most items trace back to two root causes that leaders named themselves. The first was a planning runway of about four and a half months. The second was a command structure that leaders taught on day one and then let fade. “ICS fell to the backburner despite initial education for staff and students,” one leader wrote. Because few people knew whom else to ask, questions went to the same three leaders all week, and the schedule edits and troubleshooting crowded out the briefings that should have prevented them.
If you fix only three things. Asked for the three improvements that matter most, one leader named:
A solid fiscal sponsor, with a dedicated liaison who responds quickly and has the authority to decide for the agency.
Paper copies of schedules, with minimal changes during the week.
Volunteer coordination and activity coordination split between two people.
Make ICS visible. The leadership review and the ODF planning lead’s memo agree on the rest of the command fixes. Complete the Incident Action Plan before camp. Publish a populated org chart (ICS 203) before camp and post it on the central bulletin board. Name the section chiefs early and include them in planning meetings, so they can share the pre-work and answer questions. Commit the same people to those seats all week rather than rotating volunteers through them. Hold the morning operational briefing for everyone, run by Planning. Require at least one ICS training before camp, even if it is a recording of the 2026 overview. The article “How to run the camp under ICS” covers the structure.
Every change, by area:
Area | What happened in 2026 | Recommended change |
Planning runway | About four and a half months from go to camp | Fund and start planning the summer before |
Fiscal sponsor | Slow decisions; unclear purchasing authority | A sponsor with a dedicated, empowered liaison |
Week-of purchasing | Educators went straight to leaders for supplies; one leader made store runs on a personal card | An official resource request process and a known week-of budget, with named buyers |
Day one | Check-in came before the briefing; binders and go-bags not ready for early arrivals | In-brief first, check-in after; all materials staged |
Schedule | Changed daily; QR-code and paper versions disagreed; volunteers got changes hours before shifts | Lock it; print it; announce transitions ten minutes ahead |
Roles | Chain of command unclear; three leaders took every question | Org chart published before camp; section chiefs on the planning team |
Coordination load | One person ran volunteers and activities; volunteer walk-on briefings dropped; volunteers sat idle | Split into two roles |
Scenario | Introduced once, then faded; not tied to activities | Daily updates tied to that day’s activities |
Learning balance | About 3.5 hours on readiness, 2.5 on response, 1.5 on recovery, 6.5 on unrelated career topics | Move readiness content to pre-work; build pathways by village |
Attendance | Passport unused; no record of who attended what | Stamp the passport at each session; one owner |
Credentials | More advertised than delivered | Advertise only what the schedule includes |
Counselor sessions | Uneven engagement; WiseMind certificates incomplete, unsigned or missing | One combined daily session; a lead counselor |
Badges | Students switched villages and tents, so color-coded badges no longer showed who belonged where | Lock assignments; redesign badge contents |
Food service | Kitchen unit failures and delays; one tent for both seating and serving; no food between meals at first | Test the kitchen; a second tent or more seating; snacks from hour one |
Culinary learning | Facility and schedule made it a production kitchen, not a learning kitchen | Plan culinary learning time with the chef |
Lodging | Hot days and cold nights; no one had told students to bring sleeping gear | Clear packing guidance on bedding |
Showers and toilets | Portable units unreliable; people went into host buildings to use facilities | Check service contracts; agree on host access |
Waste service | Hauler arrived before the gates opened, then tried to take the dumpster on pack-up morning | Confirm service times in writing |
Supervision | Behavior issues in tents at night; no daytime tent checks | Adults nearer student tents; scheduled rounds |
PPE | Violations not corrected, such as no gloves when serving food and loose hair at saws | Educators enforce PPE; the safety officer can stop work |
Emergency plan | Generic template; no set evacuation transport or destination | Site-specific plan; tell local emergency services the camp is there |
Medications | Labeling did not meet legal requirements, putting the nurse’s license at risk | Nurse-written procedure; over-the-counter option on the medical form |
Medical staffing | Two educators and a qualified volunteer at all times | Consider one educator and one camp nurse |
Site size | Long walks between tents, build sites and classrooms, not allowed for in the schedule | Build travel time into the schedule, or use a tighter footprint |
Host site | Camp drifted into host buildings; nails left in the host’s truck-backing range | Hard boundaries; build on asphalt |
Recreation | None scheduled; no gathering hub | An evening recreation block and a hub |
Showcase | PIOs planned it alone; no single guest list | Leadership-owned; one RSVP list; fixed tours |
Career fair | Rained out late the day before, with no list to notify exhibitors | One participant list and a weather plan |
Fatigue | Volunteers and staff driving home exhausted | Rest space on site |