FAQ's

Q: Is Tech Valley Summer Camp related to Tech Valley High School and if so how?

Both the camp and the high school were conceived by Questar III and Capital Region BOCES to provide unique opportunities for Tech Valley students to become excited about and engaged with our region's emerging technologies.  Participation in one is completely independent of participation in the other. More information about Tech Valley High School is available at the school's web site.

Parents

Q: How do I get my son or daughter nominated for camp?

Unfortunately, you cannot nominate students directly. Rather, only your middle school guidance counselors or teachers can nominate a student, through our nominating forms (to which they will need a password to open and fill out).

This is not a competitive process. The camp seeks students who are positioned to uniquely benefit from the camp. We trust that our middle school guidance counselors and other personnel are best suited to determine which students those are.   All nominations must come through the schools.

Q:  How do I improve my child's chances of being selected to the camp, once nominated?

This is not a competitive process. Once TVSC receives the nominations a lottery process determines who is selected.

Q: My son/daughter was nominated but not selected. What does this mean?

This is not a competitive process. Any student who is nominated but not selected is held in the pool of candidates as a potential alternate. If a selected student is unable to attend, an alternate is then selected via a lottery process. Your child’s selection of lack thereof is in no way a statement about his or her qualifications.

Q: My child was not selected. Do you know of other similar opportunities in the region?

The best we can do is refer you to the many resources on the web. Tech Valley Careers appears to list a variety of opportunities for children of all ages.

Q: What is the cost of the camp to our family?

The camp is at no cost to the family except the cost of transporting your child to and from the camp each day. Please visit, patronize, or contact our sponsors to thank them!

Q: What about transportation?

Transportation is the responsibility of each family. The camp occurs at a different location each day.  The locations are solidified and announced by the end of the school year. Locations are typically within Troy, Albany, and Schenectady.  In the past some students have been able to arrange carpools, rides from neighbors or relatives, etc.  

Q: My child has been selected to attend camp, now what?

You should have received a registration packet in the mail by May 1st. Be sure to fill that out as soon as possible and return it to Ms. Marcia Siver . If your registration material is not received by June 1st then you will forfeit your son or daughter's position in the camp.

Schools

Q: How do we select students to nominate?

Please see our nominations page.  We are looking students that can uniquely benefit from the camp. We are confident that each school understands how to best to identify and select these students.

Q: How do we get nomination forms?

Nomination instructions are distributed to superintendents at aBOCES meeting and mailed to the school guidance offices thereafter. If you do not receive these by March 15, 2008, if you need replacement copies, or if you are a school in Tech Valley that is not part of Questar III or Capital Region BOCES, please contact Tammie Borland to receive hard copies of forms or to receive the password to download the forms.

Camp Hosts

Q: Can we volunteer to host a day of camp?

Absolutely! We would be delighted to talk with you about ways we can work together to benefit students. Please contact Tammie Borland.

Q: Is it possible to participate if we do not have enough room for 24 students or if our location is not suitable for youth?

Yes. We have had great success in having professionals interact with the students in an off-site location, by simply bringing along the components necessary for interactive engagement.