I had no idea this topic would become so controversial. I understood both sides of the argument when my camp was dealing with it, and I still agree with bits and pieces of almost every perspective I've heard so far. I haven't read all of the replies because I haven't had internet in a while and I don't have the patience to read 125 posts, but I skimmed over them and was rather shocked at some of the things I read. Regardless of what you think about the matter, I really hope that, especially as a camp counselor, you are open-minded and a good listener. Be respectful of other's opinions and withhold your own biases when considering other perspectives. Discussion is one thing, close-eared debate is another.
I know I shouldn't do this since I'm trying to end this chaos, but against my better judgment I'm going to express two of my views that side with both arguments (for safety reasons, camp spirit aside), just to close this off:
1. Unlike teachers, camp counselors are typically young, considered to be more unprofessional, and are often in college... why does this matter? Because this age group is stereotypically less trustworthy than a teacher with a masters degree. Again, why does that matter? If a camper gets ahold of a counselor's real name, there is a lot of information that can be found out, especially nowadays with the internet. I know of a counselor who was the victim of a fraudulent sexual harassment claim. A camper found the counselor's email address using his/her name, and created a fraudulent email in which the counselor made inappropriate sexual comments and requests of the camper. There was a lawsuit, and it ruined the counselor's reputation. Finally, the camper admitted his/her lie and all charges were dropped.
Also, while camp counselors hopefully are not doing too many "unmentionable acts" when off duty, college-aged youth are notorious for partying and all of that good stuff... some campers aren't that young, maybe only a year or two younger than a counselor. If they are from the same town, or in similar social groups, the camper might be exposed to hearing stories about the counselor where, had the counselor gone by a camp name, the camper would not be as likely to associate the counselor with the stories.
2. Imagine a camper going home and telling his/her mom or dad that Jelly Bean touched his/her private parts. The parents are going to want a real name. Depending on the age of the camper, talking to Minnie Mouse might be more difficult than talking to Susie about how he or she was being molested at home.
Now, a letter could be sent home during the week, introducing yourself (the counselor) to the parents, explaining the camp name and revealing your real name, and ideally even saying a little about their child. But there are still arguments against this, as well... even beyond mailing costs, heh.
I know everyone is going to want to post another reply now, but I'd rather everyone just consider the issues, no matter where you presently stand, and make sure that whatever you decide, it's for the right reasons.
This issue severely divided my staff two summers ago. We had a new director and one of the biggest changes that he made was prohibiting camp names. Of course there was a huge rebellion, many discussions and attempt at compromise, but it ended with the staff hating the new Director. After adjusting to the new environment, and having a huge turnover rate in staff, camp names are used by some, although real names are revealed if asked, and the Director is no longer viewed as evil.
Please, as someone who has been through a few years of this sort of divide, don't let Director/Staff issues ruin the summer for the kids. Even if you disagree with something, don't let the kids suffer because of it.
I'll end it with that.
