Youth Academy means fun for future students

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To give future post-secondary students the jump on science, arts and other subjects—while having as much fun as possible—NIC offers camps called Youth Academy.

Aimed at students aged 7-13 years, the  fun-filled sessions are based in Comox, Campbell River and Port Alberni. The program has also been rooted in other communities around the region, including one in Sointula.

With Youth Academy, there’s lots on offer.  Everything from the popular Lego robotics camps, Lego all girls and Lego Bot Extreme, STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and sports, STEAM (including an introduction to graphic design as the “Arts” component) and coding, a camp in which students created their own video games, as well as a return of the fine arts and mixed media camps.

This program’s beginning can be traced all the way back to a Lego robotics camp in the summer of 2016. Early on, NIC’s Centre for Applied Research Technology and Innovation (CARTI) oversaw the camps.  

In 2020, the program was put on pause because of the pandemic but came back in 2021, rebranded as the Youth Academy, with a broader range of camp choices for kids.  Marketing and Future Students initially ran the rebranded program; however Continuing Education and Training took over in 2024.

Youth Academy has continued to be popular, typically attracting about 250 kids to camps each summer, and it has been made possible with the support of a range of community partners.  

NIC has kept its eyes on the future for 50 years, and programs like the Youth Academy help it remain focused on what lies ahead for tomorrow’s students, while having a lot of fun. You can find more information about the Youth Academy on the NIC website.