A week at the museum

An increasing number of area museums are launching summer camps as nonprofits look for ways to boost their funding in the current economic downtown.

Capitalizing on interest generated by the popular “Night at the Museum” movies, these camps introduce a future generation of arts patrons to the wonders within their walls.

“This is the first year we are doing a camp,” said Lisa Simpson Lutts, executive director of the Museum Center at Five Points in Cleveland, Tenn.

Ms. Lutts said the staff had plans for camp last summer that fell through, but they learned lessons on organizing and promoting camps that have paid off in this summer’s arts camp.

Additionally, the museum is partnering with the Ocoee Regional Multicultural Service for a second camp promoting unity in diversity. The “culture and language” camp is sponsored by The Mosaic Center in Cleveland.

Ms. Lutts said the addition of camp is three-fold: to provide quality summer arts programming for youth, boost the number of youth served by the museum and reach a multicultural audience of youth the museum doesn’t normally serve.

The Hunter Museum of American Art, one of the first to offer summer youth camps more than a decade ago, is broadening its range to add two teen camps this summer.

“There’s no question that the economic downturn has affected nonprofit organizations across the country and museums are no exception,” said Katrina Craven, Hunter spokeswoman.

“Summer camps offer museums a way to bring in additional revenue. Beyond that, they allow museums to reach new audiences and give camp participants an in-depth experience in their facilities,” Ms. Craven said.

Marlene Payne at the Chattanooga History Center said that center is hosting a two-day program at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park since the museum is currently housed in an interim location,.

“Because our interim location does not have the space in which to do much for children, we are only doing one program for youngsters this summer and it will be at Chickamauga Battlefield. This will definitely change once we are in our new place,” Ms. Payne said.