2024 is almost over. Take a moment to make a lasting difference in a young artist’s life. Inspire their journey. Make your gift today.
Jan. 15 is the Priority Application Deadline for Interlochen Arts Camp and Arts Academy. Programs fill quickly—submit your app today!
Camp Life: Junior Division
Cabin Life
During your stay at Camp, you'll live in a cozy cabin with 11 other budding artists. Each cabin is supervised by two college-age counselors, some of whom are former Interlochen students themselves!
Each day, you'll wake up at 7 a.m. to the sound of reveille. After cabin chores and announcements, you'll head off for a hearty breakfast and your first class of the day. You'll return to your cabin after lunch for rest hour, followed by an afternoon of classes and an evening of activities or arts events. You'll end your day with a call-to-quarters at 8:45 p.m. After a bunk talk, story, or flashlight time, you'll drift off to sleep to the sound of Taps.
Dining
As a junior student, you'll join your counselors and cabin-mates for each meal of the day. Lakeside students eat in Pinecrest Dining Hall, while Pines students enjoy the view of Duck Lake from Lochaven Dining Hall. Meals are varied, kid-friendly, and nutritionally balanced. We offer vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options at every meal—and we do our best to pay careful attention to students with food allergies. Don't worry, families—counselors make sure each student has at least one helping of fruits/veggies and one glass of water at each meal.
The Uniform
Whenever you leave your division, you'll don the traditional blue-on-blue Camp uniform, worn at Interlochen since 1928. The uniform unites us visually and identifies you as a member of our vibrant, creative community. Although the uniform is simple, it's flexible—we encourage you to customize your look with your choice of navy-blue bottoms and colorful accessories.
Activities and Traditions
At Interlochen, you'll spend several hours per day learning about your chosen art form. But there's still plenty of time for good, old-fashioned fun!
In your free time, you'll explore a variety of outdoor activities, including swimming, tennis, archery, stilt-walking, ping-pong, picnics, and campfires. Counselors supervise all land activities, while certified lifeguards watch over you in our crystal clear lakes. You'll also have the opportunity to tackle the Dune Climb at nearby Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
There's also plenty of time for working on projects in the craft shop. With help from your counselors, you'll learn to make friendship bracelets, keychains, paper masks, and other fun items that you can give as gifts to your family and new friends.
Depending on which session you attend, you'll participate in a variety of Camp traditions. First-session campers will attend First Gathering and join in the Fourth of July festivities. Second-session campers will experience "Collage," an interdisciplinary showcase put on by peers of all ages and arts disciplines. Come for the final session of the summer and you'll get to attend Maddy Gras, a special carnival put on by the high school students. Every junior session ends with a final campfire, where you'll roast s'mores, sing camp songs, celebrate your artistic growth, and share your favorite part of camp with your new close friends.
Taking Care
We know going to sleep-away camp can be scary. That's why we'll be right beside you every step of the way.
During your first days here, a counselor will help you find all of your classes. After that, you and your friends can walk to classes and rehearsals together.
Also, your cabin is located just minutes away from one of Interlochen's three health centers. These facilities are staffed all day (one 24 hours a day), 7 days a week by a dedicated team of health care providers. In addition to administering daily medications, our medical staff are here to handle any little emergencies that might occur—from bee stings to summer colds to poison ivy. And should a bigger emergency arise, Interlochen is 15 minutes away from Munson Medical Center, a class II trauma center.
Learn more about Health Services
The Interlochen campus is also watched over by our Campus Safety team. They roam the campus 24/7, provide a watchful eye over our gated main entrance, and are always ready to assist in event of an emergency. Interlochen maintains a thorough Site Emergency Plan and is able to utilize a variety of emergency alert systems to keep our campus informed and safe. Our safety officers will also help you find your way around campus or look for your misplaced music folder.