Physician’s Creative Arts Camp Also Teaches
Self-Esteem  

As a doctor with a busy practice, it is not easy to take time off. But for Shahana Rogosin, M.D., a psychiatrist at the Fremont Center, there is no way she will miss her summer camp.

Dr. Rogosin is the program director of Creative Arts, Music and Performance (C-A-M-P) ― a 12-day summer camp in Maine that her parents, Roy and Eileen Rogosin, founded when she was 18 years old. “My mother was one of the original Mouseketeers, and both of my parents had a long career in the entertainment industry,” Dr. Rogosin explains.“C-A-M-P started as an offshoot of the theater they ran.”

At C-A-M-P, children ages 8 to 17 learn skills such as dance, creative writing, basic filmmaking, singing and acting from a faculty made up of a diverse group of artists, including current and former professional dancers, actors, writers and directors. However, what
has drawn Dr. Rogosin back every summer for the past 20 years is the impact the camp makes on the children’s lives.

“My time at C-A-M-P is definitely not a vacation,” says Dr. Rogosin, who does everything from setting the program and hiring the staff to running the camp infirmary. “What I get out of it is seeing the tremendous amount of development the children go through in a very short amount of time. In just 12 days, the children form long-lasting friendships, learn life skills they didn’t have before and improve their
self-esteem in a way that helps carry them through the upcoming school year.”

The creative arts tend to draw a slightly higher-than-
average number of children who have trouble fitting in with their peers or are facing psychiatric issues such as anxiety, depression or focus disorders, Dr. Rogosin says. As a result, it is all the more important that they have access to a nurturing environment where they can develop both artistic talents and life skills under the guidance of teachers who are not
only experts in their field, but who also have received training in basic child and adolescent emotional and psychological health issues.

There is one staff member for every two and a half campers, and Dr. Rogosin trains the staff PAMF Connection September 2008 personally to ensure any issues that come up, like bullying, are dealt with promptly and effectively. The camp also offers scholarships to ensure no interested child is turned away because of lack of money.

“Parents will call us months after the camp has
ended and let us know that a child who was
struggling to fit in now has a best friend or has
joined the school band,” Dr. Rogosin says.
“C-A-M-P is a very nurturing environment. The
kid who didn’t think he or she could sing ends
up being the star of the talent show. For me, it
is nice to go and see that happen.”

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