VAMPY was an incredible experience that has inspired my thinking, fueled my curiosity, and “gifted” me with friendships that will last a lifetime. It has offered me a life changing world of friendship and learning. Earlier in the school year, Zane, my friend, and I were working in study hall, and Zane received a notification from Gmail. The email was forwarded by our gifted coordinator, Jared Hoffman. We were highly recommended by our former gifted coordinator, Daniel Shaner, for a trip to Western Kentucky University to study Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. The name of the program was VAMPY (Verbally and Mathematically Precocious Youth), a three week summer camp that focuses on academic and social prosperity. We were thrilled about the opportunity, however we had to figure out if we were free to go. Zane and I both had to make sacrifices in order to actually go to the camp. He missed a marching band parade and baseball games. I missed a mission trip with my church as well as some soccer practices. Together the both of us agreed that studying this subject and going to VAMPY had great potential to let us grow socially and academically. We were excited to meet new friends from eleven states and three countries. After signing a multitude of forms and returning numerous phone calls, we were finally ready for the camp to begin.
Zane and I arrived in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Sunday, June 24th, 2018. All that we knew walking onto the WKU campus was that we were studying Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, a program which included a trip to the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C., and we were going to be taught by Ron Skillern, Kentucky’s Teacher of the Year in 2017. The very first thing we had to do when we arrived on campus was wait in a line in order to register. The next thing we had to do was move into our dorm. This is where we met our counselor, Aaron Bard, and the rest of our hallmates. Next, Zane and I had to hand over our cell phones to our counselor. Before the trip, we discussed if they were serious about taking our phones, but we found out the first day that relinquishing our electronics was inevitable. Going into VAMPY without a phone was scary at first, for I spend quite a lot of time on my electronics, However, once I talked to my hallmates and played some icebreaker games, I became more comfortable without a phone. The first time we saw everyone was at dinner in the university’s cafeteria, FRESH foods.
There were a number of traditions held by returning camp members that made the experience all the more memorable. For example, there were traditional camp experiences, such as camp olympics, a talent show, and cookouts. However, there was time after dinner where we were instructed to sign up for an activity with particularly outlandish sounding names. Ironically, these activities were called “optionals,” but they were mandatory to sign up for and attend. These activities turned out to be one of my favorite memories of VAMPY. Also, people there enjoyed playing card games such as Magic the Gathering, mao, and other games that many would consider “too nerdy” to play. The best part about VAMPY is that nobody judged or bullied you because of your interests, and everybody was treated with respect.
The Holocaust class was very interesting and educational. The first day of class was just like any other I have experienced in elementary school, yet I was nervous because many people knew each other already. However, my nerves quickly eased while Zane and I participated in name games and learned more about each other and the teachers. Compared to many other school settings, the VAMPY classes encouraged getting to know your teachers and your classmates on a personal, yet professional level. A major reason for the close relationships with the other classmates was the somber and serious subject that is the Holocaust. The first few days of class were full of note taking and lectures on Nazi Germany. We mainly focused on the seriousness of the subject and the major questions that surround it. Our class watched around eight movies about the subject from different viewpoints of the war. My personal favorite was Generation War, a set of one hour movies which showed World War Two from the German perspective. Watching a film about the Holocaust every day could be a little depressing sometimes, but I believe watching the films gave me a new perspective and a much deeper understanding of the atrocities being committed at the time.
My favorite thing we did during the Holocaust class was the projects. There were three different projects to choose from. These included a play that followed Anne Frank and her friends in the afterworld following her death in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, a mural depicting a scene from the Pianist that presented a strong message about the Holocaust, and the mock trial of Adolf Hitler. Zane and I both chose the mock trial project, but I was on the defense team and Zane was on the prosecution team. Hitler was tried with multiple crimes such as crimes against humanity, aggressive war, breaking international treaties, war crimes, and conspiracy to commit the previous charges. After two weeks of studying the law and trying to make sure Hitler covered up all of his tracks, the defense used all of its resources to set Hitler completely free of all charges. The prosecution team was resourceful and presented a multitude of damning information, but their execution of this information was ill-prepared.
Two weeks into our VAMPY experience, our class, as well as the presidential politics class and the pop culture class, took a one day trip to Washington D.C. We got on the bus in the evening and arrived in the capital around 8:00 a.m. I tried to get some rest, but the bumpy drive and other restless passengers prevented my sleep. The first thing we did was a memorial tour. This had been my second time to Washington D.C., but the memorials were still a beautiful and momentous sight to see the second time around. Next, my class went to the United States Memorial Holocaust Museum. We stayed in the museum for about four hours, reading information, studying artifacts, and watching educational videos about the Holocaust and antisemitism. The most touching exhibits included the Tower of Faces, the replica cattle car used to transport Jewish people into the concentration camps, the Hall of Remembrance, or the shoes confiscated by the Nazis. Following the museum, our class ate lunch at the Department of Agriculture buffet. It was an enjoyable lunch, and I got my meal for a lower price because of a nice cashier. After lunch, we went with a small group of four other students to the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. On the trip back, I slept on the floor, a similar experience to that of sleeping through a continuous earthquake.
One of our great teachers at VAMPY, Mr. Skillern, went on a trip to Poland to attend a study-seminar. While on this trip, Mr Skillern met with the teacher who brought this opportunity to our attention, Mr Shaner. Unbeknownst to Zane and I, Classrooms Without Borders, the same group who gave us the scholarship to go to VAMPY, paired up two of the best teachers I have ever had to learn more about the topic we went to study. Classrooms Without Borders paired up our school with WKU, making our trip to VAMPY possible. CWB paid for half of the funding for our scholarship. Zane and I are grateful for the connection we have had with CWB because their appreciation for learning has granted us an educational opportunity of a lifetime.
This experience could not have been better without my teachers, my teaching assistants, and my counselor, Aaron Bard. Zane would have debates with our counselor about football and video games, and Aaron always made the extra effort to make sure our time at VAMPY was an enjoyable time. As a student of WKU, Aaron knew the campus very well and was willing to answer any of our questions, except the ones that were about events only returning campers knew about. Ani and Jake, our teaching assistants, helped us with our projects and added key information to help with the trial process. Ani is a very intelligent man that has inspired us to read more and take the challenge of AP courses. Jake was a considerate, kind person that could always be found reading a book about the Holocaust to further his knowledge of the subject. Finally, Mr. Ron Skillern and Mr. Jonathan Vaughn, our teachers, inspired Zane and I to create a Holocaust elective class for Baldwin High School. Their dedication for teaching and their incredible lectures made the Nazi Germany and Holocaust class even better. When Mr. Skillern left for a week to visit sites such as Auschwitz concentration camp, Mr. Vaughn continued the class, and he did a wonderful job of helping us understand the subject on a deeper level. With the help of our gifted coordinator, Jared Hoffman, our former gifted coordinator, Daniel Shaner, and Mr. Skillern, we hope to deliver a Holocaust class to our high school and teach others the importance of this subject.
To conclude, VAMPY is a great place for students to learn and have fun. The camp is full of really nice kids, staff, counselors, and teachers. Nobody is judged and nobody bullies each other. It is a great place to get a firm understanding of a single subject and to answer more thought provoking questions than that of textbooks and tests can ask. I went into the experience expecting to be bored without my phone, lonely with nobody except Zane, but we have made multiple friends from all across the United States. No day at VAMPY felt rigorous or hard to get through because of the fun activities and educational experiences. Zane and I would highly recommend this program because of the incredible people, the wonderful memories, and the educational opportunities that came from a three week camp known as VAMPY.
We would like to thank Classrooms Without Borders for granting Zane and I the scholarships for VAMPY. This camp is one that more and more kids should visit. We would like to also thank Dr. Julia Roberts for providing us with a summer experience that has inspired us to play a larger part in our communities.
Written by Griffin Graham, Edited by Zane Wooddell.