Teaming Up for Summer: All youth should have access to summer enrichment.

We reduce community-identified barriers for youth in accessing summer enrichment. We offer free and reduced cost access to high-quality summer programs, coordinate multiple, summer-long rural transportation routes, and provide trainings for summer program staff to better support youth with behavioral needs and disabilities in La Plata County.

About the Program

Team Up provides full and partial scholarships in partnership with summer youth programs in La Plata County to families who experience cost as a barrier to program participation or children who are disproportionately at risk of summer learning loss.

We understand that many working families may not qualify for most financial assistance programs, yet they can still face significant financial challenges. Our goal is to create opportunities that address these challenges and provide meaningful support to families in our community, regardless of household income.

Our 2026 application is live! Please review the details about each summer program below before filling out the form to find the best fit for your family.

Please note that many of our partners open registration late March or early April so communication from these programs will be delayed. Each program has their own process for enrolling students and administering scholarships- details are found below! Completing our application does not automatically enroll your child in a summer camp.

After you apply through our form, you will be connected with the top three program partners of your choice, who will reach out to you based on scholarship availability. Please contact programs directly if you have specific questions about their summer programming.

Are you an educator, counselor, or other trusted adult who would like to recommend a student for the scholarship program? Please complete a referral form to get us in touch with the student's guardian about these opportunities.

Summer 2026

Meet the Partners

Stillwater Music offers half-day music camps for kids age 5-teen to explore music through ukulele, drums, voice, and audio production—no experience necessary! We're teaming up with partners like Seed Studio, The Powerhouse, and Every Pedal for unique full-day camps, plus our Stillwater All Stars, a summer-long band for advanced teens, and the Creative Music Conservatory for string musicians in grades 4-12.

Ignacio Youth Services provides year-round programming for youth in grades 6–12. Programs are grounded in culture and tradition, include nature-based engagement, experiential education, with a strength-based approach, teaching service ethics, and strong connection building. Our summer programming includes a 5-night, 6-day camp for 32 youth, and 7-hour July day camps that explore the local region through outdoor recreation, skill-building, and hands-on learning experiences.

The Boys and Girls Club of La Plata County offers a full day program of fun, engaging activities, Monday through Thursday 7:30am-5:30pm, and Friday 7:30am - 12:30pm. Grades 1 through 12. Sites in Bayfield and Durango. Programs and activities include: sports & recreation, arts, summer learning, character development, workforce readiness, career exploration, and more.

The Hive DGO is a Youth-Centered Community Hub that strives to support journeys in self discovery by providing a brave and inclusive space for under resourced and under represented youth. Our mission is to empower those that dare to be different by facilitating creative expression and guidance in shaping future community leaders. For 8-16 year olds, The Hive is offering summer camp experiences in Skateboard creation and culture, “SK8 Camp”, artistic expression with local artists, “Expression Sessions”, and outdoor excursions around our local community, “The Wild Hive”.

The Powerhouse offers week-long science camps for curious minds! Programming is for students going in to 1st-8th grades. Camps run 9am-3pm, Monday-Friday with optional extended care.

Sail Durango offers the opportunity to learn the basics of sailing — rigging, teamwork, confidence, environmental stewardship, and plenty of time on the water. No experience required.
Ages: 5–18
Skill Level: All welcome

Dancing Spirit offers 3 one-week arts camps over the summer for ages 6-12 years. Camps feature pottery & mixed media art experiences, time outside, games and crafts.

LPYS is partnering with the LifeWays Wilderness Institute for our fourth year of wilderness mentorship for male and female teens 14 and up! We offer biweekly mentorship across La Plata County and provide access to incredible outdoor activities: paddling, camping, climbing, and a 6 day backpacking trip in the San Juan National Forest in July/August.

Durango Dance offers inclusive summer camp for ages 5-10yrs.

SJMA is full for the 2026 season. SJMA’s Junior Naturalist Field Camps offer immersive, hands-on outdoor adventures for rising first graders through high school, fostering a deep connection to nature through exploration, science, and outdoor skills. Led by experienced educators, our camps take place in stunning natural settings, where campers hike, learn essential skills, and discover the wonders of the Rocky Mountain ecosystem.

The Seed Studio is full for the 2026 season. Seeds believes planting seeds leads to creativity, self expression, and mindfulness through art. From mixed media to ceramics and Seed + Soil to our Seedling Playshops, Seed has quality enrichment camps for preK to teens.

Durango DEVO is full for the 2026 Season. Devo offers youth mountain biking for kids in the greater Durango area! For this Team Up scholarship program, we are offering two different full-day camps for 5 to 11 year olds. We provide a variety of camps for ages 3-18. Currently, spots for children ages 8-11 are completely full, but there is remaining availability for students ages 5 through 7 years old only. We partner with a few other local youth organizations - seed studio and four corners paddle school.

Camp Peak Energy is a week-long day camp for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities ages 5-21.

Camp Peak Energy is full for the 2026 season- reach out to Liz Mora to learn how your family can get involved next year: liz@thearcofswco.org!

Durango Arts Center is Full for the 2026 season.
Durango Arts Center offers Two Summer Theatre Camp sessions. They will run June 8–25, Monday–Thursday: a morning session (9am–12pm) for 3rd–5th grade and an afternoon session (1pm–4pm) for middle school and up, with performances June 26–28 (Fri 7pm, Sat 7pm, Sun 2pm, possible Sat 2pm matinee). Two Summer Musical Theatre Camp sessions run July 6–30, Monday–Thursday: a morning session (9am–12pm) for 3rd–5th grade, and an afternoon session (1pm–4pm) for middle school and up, with performances July 31–August 2 (Fri 7pm, Sat 7pm, Sun 2pm, possible Sat 2pm matinee).

Make a tax-deductible contribution to our Summer Program fund.

Our Impact

Since establishing the Summer Scholarship program in 2023, Team Up has created access to summer programming for 1,093 children and youth in La Plata County. Each year, we gather information around the youth we serve in order to better understand the impact we have on La Plata County families and the community needs we can support going forward. The below dashboard reflects our 2025 impact. 

We weave these findings along with parent and organization feedback to strengthen the program year after year, adding elements like interpretation support, youth transportation, and trainings for our program partners’ staff to better serve youth of all ability levels. We are already planning ways to improve the program for next summer, and are so grateful to be able to offer this critical program!

The funding allows us to bring in more teachers and provide higher quality materials. It especially helps get the word out about the different programs that are available in our area.
— 2024 Partner Organization
Team Up has allowed us to almost double the number of students we serve through our week long camps.

“This program helped my child’s mental, social, and physical health. I am happy to see her interact and make new friends and learn new things every day. Thank you for making my daughter a happy camper!”

— 2025 Scholarship Parent

A man with tattoos and glasses sits on the floor, helping a young boy with a guitar in a music classroom. The boy is wearing a camouflage hat and is holding the guitar, with musical notes decor hanging on the window behind them.

Thank you to our 2025 partners, sponsors, and funders for supporting this program - and our local youth - for another year.

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2025 Funders

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