Goshen College offers a variety of summer camps both on campus and at Merry Lea. Our camp offerings span from academic, STEAM-oriented day camps designed to help young minds engage their creativity and explore the world around them to athletics camps and music camps.
Scholarships are available for all day camps. Grade ranges for the camps are based on the grade the student will be entering in the Fall.
All camps run from 8:30 a.m.- 2:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted and include lunch. Transportation from designated locations in Elkhart and Goshen provided upon request at no additional charge. Camps meet on the Goshen College campus.
Scholarships
If you receive free or reduced school lunches, you may be eligible for a scholarship.
You can apply for a scholarship on the registration form.
Questions: [email protected]
Please use the table below to learn more about our camp offerings. Type the grade your camper will be entering in Fall 2026 in the search to filter results.
| Camp Name | Grade next Fall | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Board Game Creation | 4th, 5th | June 8-12 | Campers will explore game design by playing a variety of boardgames and game shows, analyzing the elements that make them fun and engaging. They will then use these insight to brainstorm and create their own games, focusing on crafting rules, building challenges, and designing game pieces. Throughout the week, campers will explore different styles of games, test their creations and refine them based on the feedback. The camp will conclude with a showcase where campers present and play the games they’ve designed, demonstrating their creativity and teamwork. |
| Art & Vision - FULL | 6th, 7th, 8th | June 1-5 | Campers will explore a variety of different art mediums and learn about artists both contemporary and historical through the lens of “vision.” What did these artists see? How did they use art as a tool of discovery? What did they communicate through their art? These questions will be jumping off points to help students use art as means of exploring and communicating about their own lives and the worlds they inhabit. The imagination is a powerful and necessary bridge between reality as it is and vision of something better. |
| Exploremos la cultura y el futuro / Let's explore culture and the future | 5th, 6th, 7th, | June 8-12 | We will explore Hispanic cultures, take a tour of the campus, and learn about future career possibilities, the majors to prepare for those careers, and how bilingualism can be an asset both personally and professionally. |
| Write on Sports | 7th, 8th, | June 8-19 | The Write on Sports summer camp creates an opportunity for students to discover their voice and confidently write about their interests and points of view. We use sports as the theme as a way to connect with students in an authentic and meaningful way. |
| ASL Camp 101 - FULL | 6th, 7th, 8th, | June 15-19 | Students will have an introductory course in American Sign Language. They will learn survival signs, ABCs and communication as well as learning about careers in the basic field of ASL. |
| The Goshen Young Innovators Lab: From Idea to Launch - FULL | 6th, 7th, 8th, | June 15-19 | The Goshen Young Innovators Lab is a one-week entrepreneurship intensive designed to empower students to transform community problems into viable business solutions. Through mentorship from local founders and hands-on workshops, participants will develop an entrepreneurial mindset, culminating in a "Shark Tank" style pitch competition presented to a panel of judges. |
| STEM Lego Robotics - FULL | 3rd, 4th | June 22-26 | Students will build with legos to make robotic items. They will be engaged in stem like instructions as well as learning how to code each item using a type of remote. The last will be Parents’ Day to come see what their child has made and watch it work. A competition may be held. |
| Drumming & Percussion for All - FULL | 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th | June 8-12 | Students will make music using drums, xylophones and other percussion in fun and engaging ways. Students will get to play a wide variety of percussion instruments, play percussion pieces and will learn to improvise rhythms and simple tunes, cumulating in an end of the camp performance for family and friends. Other possibilities would be to play the College's gamelon and have a visiting guest percussionist. No experience needed. |
| Drumming & Percussion for All | 6th, 7th, 8th, | June 22-26 | Students will make music using drums, xylophones and other percussion in fun and engaging ways. Students will get to play a wide variety of percussion instruments, play percussion pieces and will learn to improvise rhythms and simple tunes, cumulating in an end of the camp performance for family and friends. Other possibilities would be to play the College's gamelon and have a visiting guest percussionist. No experience needed. |
| ETHOS Lab in a Bag - FULL | 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th | July 13-17 | At ETHOS in a Bag Summer Camp, curiosity takes the lead! Campers explore science through HANDS-ON STEM labs that they test and take home, engineering challenges, and interactive games designed to spark creativity and critical thinking. Along the way, they’ll discover how STEM connects to real careers in our community—and of course, no ETHOS camp is complete without our epic Slime Factory and plenty of messy, memorable fun! |
| STEM Lego Robotics - FULL | 7th, 8th | July 13-17 | Students will build with legos to make robotic items. They will be engaged in stem like instructions as well as learning how to code each item using a type of remote. The last will be Parents’ Day to come see what their child has made and watch it work. A competition may be held. |
| Read, Act, Play - FULL | 2nd, 3rd | June 1-5 | Readers' Theater based camp designed to build oral fluency and strengthen reading skills. Teamwork is developed by designing props and backgrounds. Students build confidence by performing for their peers. |
| **HIGH SCHOOL** | |||
| Creating in Clay | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 8-12 | Camp participants will work with clay and learn about creative processes in pottery. Students will have the opportunity to complete and keep some art pieces that they create. Developing their own plan helps students gain experience to innovate and create through the medium of clay. |
| Exploring the Scientist Within | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 8-12 | High school students will explore science through hands-on experiments but also to real world connections. I want to connect several lab experiences (microscopy, microbiology, molecular biology and anatomy) to scientific questions. The camp will emphasize curiosity, scientific thinking, and real-world connections to careers in science and medicine [field trips to hospital, Merry Lea]. |
| Filmmaking - FULL | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 8-12 | Students will get a taste of Hollywood as they produce their own short films. They will learn scriptwriting, preproduction, cinematography, directing and editing. They will get hands-on experience with professional digital cinema equipment and editing systems. At the end of the week they will premiere their films for their family and friends. |
| ASL Camp 201 | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 22-26 | Students will have an introductory course in American Sign Language. They will learn survival signs, ABCs and communication as well as learning about careers in the basic field of ASL. |
| Exploring Healthcare: Careers & Opportunities | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 22-26 | This camp is geared toward high school students who are interested in the field of healthcare. Healthcare is a broad field and we will help students explore and create a plan to pursue their individual interests. We will provide fun hands-on activities related to nursing and public health and students will have the opportunity to tour Goshen Hospital during this week-long camp. |
| Global Passports: Around the World with Goshen College | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | June 22-26 | We will feature the importance of intercultural skills and global citizenship for success in leadership and career calling through a focus on building knowledge about four global destinations including Ecuador, Indonesia, Tanzania and local indigenous cultures. Each day will highlight food, games, crafts, music, media and online geography games for each of our locations, including intercultural skill building around cultural customs and similarities and differences between our culture and our host communities culture. |
| The Goshen Young Innovators Lab: From Idea to Launch | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | July 6-10 | The Goshen Young Innovators Lab is a one-week entrepreneurship intensive designed to empower students to transform community problems into viable business solutions. Through mentorship from local founders and hands-on workshops, participants will develop an entrepreneurial mindset, culminating in a "Shark Tank" style pitch competition presented to a panel of judges. |
| Cultura e Identidad | 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th | July 6-10 | Heritage Spanish learners will have the opportunity to explore their culture and identity through the Hispanic media, arts, and literature. |
Dates: Sunday, June 14 (4pm) – Thursday, June 18
Tuition: $275, financial aid is available for those who qualify, returning campers receive a discount
Registration Fee: $25, waived if registering on or before Friday April 3. The
Registration deadline: Friday May 8
Calling all piano and strings players! Looking for a summer camp to hone your skills, learn some fantastic piano duets and string chamber music, perform in Goshen College’s Rieth Recital Hall and Elkhart’s beautiful Ruthmere historical home, and make friends with other musicians? Then the 2026 Goshen College Piano and Strings Camp is the place for you!
Student performances include a final duet recital in Rieth Recital Hall (June 18), daily masterclass performances for Guest Artists Dr Elena Cholakova or Dr Solomia Soroka or camp faculty, and a special field-trip performance at the incredible Ruthmere historical home in Elkhart (June 17).<
Eligibility: rising 4th grade through 2026 high school graduates, with a prerequisite of two years of private piano lessons.
Piano students will come to camp prepared with a solo piece to perform, but will also be assigned and sent a piano duet to learn and perform over the course of the camp.
Eligibility: rising 6th grade through 2026 high school graduates, with a prerequisite of two years of playing experience and note-reading ability.
Strings students will be assigned small and large chamber ensemble pieces to learn and perform over the course of camp, and are encouraged to also bring a solo piece to perform in a masterclass setting.
Eligibility: 8th – 12th grade girls
Dates: June 27 or August 30
Designed specifically for serious players who want to be challenged, developed, and evaluated. It’s an opportunity to experience our program firsthand while competing in a high-level, college-style environment. You’ll go through advanced skill work, live game play, and position-specific training led by our coaching staff.