Nursing Professor Coordinates Theater Camp for Youth with Disabilities
A free weekday summer camp at Duquesne will give youth with disabilities a fun opportunity to develop their acting and communication skills while improving their self-esteem and confidence.
STAGES II—A Summer Theater Camp Program for Youth with Disabilities will be held Monday, July 1, through Friday, July 5, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Genesius Theater and the School of Nursing’s Learning and Simulation Center. The camp is open to seventh and 12th graders with a documented disability.
“STAGES II will be very similar to the theater program’s STAGES I summer camp, which is held the following week on campus,” Associate Nursing Professor Dr. Becky Kronk said. “The outcomes for both camps are similar. We want the participants to develop some good communication skills and the ability to advocate for themselves.”
Kronk, whose $25,000 grant from the Edith L. Trees Charitable Trust funded the camp, teamed up with John Lane, director of the Theater Arts program, for STAGES II.
“STAGES I targets underserved communities and brings teens from across the region together to create a production from the ground up. They gain many transferable skills that theater teaches—collaboration, communication and perseverance, among others. It also enhances social skills and fosters positive self-image and self-worth,” Lane said. “The Theater Arts program is very excited to be working with the School of Nursing to expand our service to the community working on STAGES I.”
The 10 campers will spend most of their time in the Genesius Theater working on a short production that they’ll perform July 5. In addition, they’ll spend an afternoon in the Learning and Simulation Center, where they will role play some scenarios and portray a health care provider or a patient.
“This session of the camp is designed to help the participants learn about a clinical environment, alleviate some of their fears they may have and help with their confidence,” Kronk said.