Housing Policies

Computer Policy

Telephone Policy

Audition Policy

• Roommate requests are considered when they are made by all parties involved and are received in writing (on the registration form, via email, or via regular mail). These requests will be honored in the order in which they were received and to the extent possible, since there are a limited number of rooms for more than two people. Every attempt will also be made to honor requests made after the May 25th deadline; however, it is unlikely that late requests for more than two people per room can be met.

Given the social nature of students in this age group, it is inappropriate for the Wooster Music Camp to assume that someone wishes to room with another person unless he/she identifies that person as a potential roommate. For example, if John asks to room with Jeff and Jeff does not ask for John, our staff has no way of knowing what the relationship is and whether or not Jeff is interested in having John as a roommate. It would be presumptuous to assign them together under this circumstance.
• Changing roommate requests after applications are submitted is acceptable, if the changed request is submitted in writing via email or regular mail, is received no later than July 5th and is confirmed by all parties involved.

It is understood that students change their minds about camp attendance and that those who submit applications early may indeed find that the person they planned to have as a roommate has decided not to attend camp. In such cases it is appropriate to submit a new request, and every effort will be made to honor that request.
• Requests are considered in the order in which they are received.

When the time arrives to assign housing, the work is done from a prioritized listing of requests. The date used for a student's priority is the date that the request is complete. For example, if three people wish to room together, the priority date is that of the receipt of the third request. Please understand that until the final request is submitted, our staff has no way of knowing that in fact all three students will actually attend camp and wish to room together. Each year we receive a large number of requests for roommates who actually never sign up to attend camp, so the only way we know that a particular student will attend is when we receive that student's application.
• Specific housing is not assigned until approximately one week prior to camp.

When dormitory space is reserved for summer camps, each camp is informed of the number of beds available; however, specific room configurations are not determined until much later. The contract between the Wooster Music Camp and The College of Wooster specifies that beds are not to be moved by camp staff or by participants and their families. In other words, we are obligated to use the configurations provided to us and we attempt to honor as many student requests as possible given these limitations. Since students do occasionally withdraw from camp after the application deadline, assigning housing just prior to camp avoids the necessity of doing the job more than once.
• No housing information will be made available to campers and their families until the registration period on July 16th beginning at 12:00 noon.

During the two weeks prior to camp, the staff time is necessarily devoted to final preparations, including preparation of housing and phone lists, movement of equipment, placement of signs, arrangement for key distribution, preparation of camper information packets, and a multitude of other tasks. Providing housing information to almost 400 families simply is not possible.
It is the mission of the Wooster Music Camp to provide participants with the opportunity to continue their musical learning, to interact with other student musicians, to have new learning experiences with different teachers, and to enjoy social and recreational time together. The schedule is full and enriching, which allows for little time in the dormitories. All participants are encouraged to understand that, while important, housing is not vital to a successful experience at the Wooster Music Camp. The experienced staff combined with the fulfilling schedule will ensure that each camper has the opportunity to experience musical and social success.
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Computer Policy

There is ample supervised computer access for campers at the Wired Scot in Lowry Center and at the Computer Center in Taylor Hall. Because colleges do not regulate sites that are available to its internet users, it is the belief of the Wooster Music Camp staff that computer internet use during our camp should be in public areas and should be supervised. During recreation and other break times, students can easily check their email at these locations; therefore, campers are not permitted to bring personal computers to camp.
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Telephone Policy

Because of a recent change in college policy, phones are no longer provided in dorm rooms. While it is possible for campers to have cell phones, the schedule allows for very little free time for phone calls. Campers are not in their rooms until after 9:30 p.m. and we strongly discourage parents from calling except in the case of an extreme emergency.

If a camper wishes to bring a cell phone, it must be left in the dorm room for use only between the hours of 9:30-10:30 p.m. and 6:30-7:30 a.m. Cell phones found outside of a camper's dorm room or being used at an inappropriate time will be confiscated and returned at the end of camp.
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Audition Policy

Students should prepare and bring a short music selection that demonstrates their musical ability. This might be a short etude, a solo, or an exercise from a lesson book. The purpose of the audition is simply to assign students to the group in which they will receive instruction at their current level of ability, so there is no need to be overly concerned or nervous about the audition procedure.

There will be 5 bands and 2 string orchestras, each of which will play music reflective of the overall skill level of the group. In general, students with several years of playing experience are placed in the ensembles that require more extensive performance skills. Students with less advanced playing ability benefit from instruction targeted at their skill level.

It is often, but not always, the case that students of similar age tend to be assigned to the same group, because they typically have developed similar playing levels; however, there are occasions when a particularly experienced/skilled player who is young might earn a spot in an advanced group that is comprised mostly of older students. The converse is also true.

Because the nature of the camp is different from an individual school music program, no two years include the same group of musicians. A student’s participation in a particular group one year does not guarantee that student’s placement in the same group the following year.
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