FAQs

Registration for Creative Summer:

Registration for Creative Summer is broken into two groups: Priority Registration and New Family Registration. Please verify which group your family falls into. New Family Applications submitted during the Priority Period will be deleted.

• Priority Registration Period: Wednesday, December 4, 2019.
  • Returning Creative Summer Families (2015 to 2019)
  • Current Holton-Arms Families
  • Holton-Arms Faculty/Staff
  • Creative Summer 2020 Staff
  • Current Holton-Arms Board Members
  • Holton-Arms Alumnae
  • 2019 Wait-list Families
  • Current Residents of zip code 20817
• New Creative Summer Families: Tuesday, January 7, 2020 at 7 p.m.

Please contact our office if you have questions about your returning family status and/or registration timing.

The Camper Health History Form is incorporated into the online registration form and is submitted when you register and submit your $150 non-refundable deposit. You will be required to provide insurance and emergency contact information and answer questions regarding your camper's basic health.

All Supplemental Health Forms, if necessary, are due Thursday, April 30, 2020.

Balance of Tuition Due

Monday, March 16, 2020

Last Day for Tuition Refund (Except Deposit)

Thursday, April 16, 2020

A Returning Creative Summer Family has had at least one child attend Creative Summer within the last five summers (2015 through 2019). Returning Family status extends to siblings even if they were not the family member who attended Creative Summer.

Returning Family status also extends to the following groups

• Current Holton-Arms Families
• Holton-Arms Faculty/Staff
• Creative Summer 2020 Staff
• Current Holton-Arms Board Members
• Holton-Arms Alumnae
• 2019 Wait-list Families
• Current Residents of 20817

For more information, please visit our Returning Family page.

Campers entering second grade have a choice of camps. They may attend EITHER Creative Sevens, a contained program of the Creative Kids Camp, where their activity schedule is pre-set, OR the Upper Camp program, Creative Campers, where each camper selects his/her own activities, and travels as an individual from class to class five times each day. Please read the descriptions of both offerings to assist you in selecting the better program for your camper entering second grade in fall 2020.

A deposit of $150 per camper, per session, is due at registration. This deposit becomes non-refundable 3 days after registration is submitted.

The balance of tuition is due Monday, March 16, 2020. For registrations or purchases of Creative Summer add-ons (such as bus service or class fees) made after Monday, March 16, 2020, full payment is due within five (5) calendar days of purchase.

During registration, families may set up an automatic payment for their account balance to be charged to their credit card on Monday, March 16, 2020.

Although full tuition is due March 16, 2020, partial payments in advance of this date through your online account or by check are also welcome. If you would like to set up a formal installment payment plan, please contact the Creative Summer office at creative.summer@holton-arms.edu

Creative Summer does not pro-rate the three-week program, regardless of the number of days/weeks the camper attends.

Tuition Refund Policy
Parents must inform our office in writing if they are withdrawing their child from any Creative Summer program. E-mail notification is acceptable. All deposits are non-refundable three days after registration is submitted. Tuition is refunded according to the following schedule:

• Withdrawal on or before Thursday, April 16, 2020, all tuition refunded except $150 deposit.
• Tuition becomes non-refundable after Thursday, April 16, 2020, regardless of circumstance.

Extended Day/Bus Refund Policy
Pre-paid Extended Day and bus service are fully refundable if cancelled before the first day of scheduled service.

• For bus service, cancellation should occur by Sunday before each session begins.
• For weekly pre-paid Extended Day (a.m. or p.m.), cancellation should occur by Sunday before each week begins.
• For daily afternoon Extended Day, cancellation should occur the day before (not the day of) scheduled attendance.

If cancelled on the first scheduled day of service or later, refunds for Extended Day and/or bus service will be prorated to the day after notice of cancellation, and service already used will be charged at the drop-in rate.

Administrative Fee
If a camp withdrawal qualifies for a refund that includes the $150 camp deposit, an administrative fee of three percent (3%) of any tuition balance paid in excess of $150 will be deducted from the refund to cover the cost of credit card processing.

Your Account Username should be the e-mail address you used when you last applied/registered for Creative Summer or the last time you updated your account information. If your email address changed after the summer of 2019 and you did not update it with the Creative Summer office, log in using your old email address as your username. You can verify/update your account information from within your online account.

If you do not remember your Account Password, click HERE to generate a password reset email message.

We recommend that you log in to your online account to verify your password before online registration begins; high volume on our server during registration could delay password reset emails. If you need further assistance, contact the Creative Summer Office by email or call 301-365-6003.

IMPORTANT: If you cannot log in to your existing account during registration, log in as a new user and create a new account. Your old and new accounts can be merged later.

Electronic payment online is required for your deposit at registration; we accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover online. Creative Summer DOES NOT accept American Express for payment processing in our online registration system.

Your final balance may be paid online or by check, mailed to Creative Summer at Holton-Arms School, 7303 River Road, Bethesda MD 20817.

The Camper Health History Form is incorporated into the online registration form and is submitted when you register. You will be required to provide one emergency contact other than a parent and your camper's insurance information. We do not require an annual checkup record from your camper's physician.

Supplemental Health Forms, if needed, are due Thursday, April 30, 2020.

Immunization Certificate/MDH Form 896 – Required by a FEW campers.
Submit camper's Immunization Records on this form ONLY IF camper resides OUTSIDE the United States,.
Submit camper's Exemption Certificate on this form if camper is exempt from any immunization for medical or religious reasons. If the exemption is on medical grounds, a physician signature is required.
Campers who require this form will be unable to attend camp until it is submitted.
Creative Summer cannot accept immunization records or exemption certificates in any format other than MDH Form 896.

Medication Administration Authorization – Needed by SOME campers.
Submit a Medication Administration Authorization (MAA) if your camper requires daily or emergency medication, including Over-the-Counter medication provided by the family. For each medication and/or EpiPen you provide for your camper, you must submit a corresponding MAA with both physician and parent signatures. Three forms are available:

• Medication Administration Authorization - single medication.
• Medication Administration Authorization - multi line. Up to three medications may be authorized on a single form
• Medication Administration Authorization - Asthma Action Plan

Over-the-Counter Medication Authorization – OPTIONAL but recommended.
Submit this form if you would like our Camp Nurse to administer certain Over-the-Counter medications (listed on the form) to treat your camper for minor injuries/illnesses as needed. These medications are provided by the camp. This OPTIONAL form requires both physician and parent signatures, and your physician must specify the medications and dosage your camper may take.

Sunscreen Authorization – OPTIONAL.
Submit this form if your camper will apply sunscreen during the camp day. List acceptable brand(s) of sunscreen and indicate whether our adult counselors may assist your camper in sunscreen application. Submit one copy to the Creative Summer office and keep a copy with the sunscreen. You must provide the sunscreen in its original container with your camper’s name clearly labeled on the container. This form requires a parent signature only.
RECOMMENDED for ALL Creative Kids (age 4-7) and any Creative Campers (age 7-13) with outdoor activities on their schedule.

Visit the Registration Health Forms page for more information.

In the first week of June you will receive an information packet from Creative Summer will be mailed to your home address. This mailing includes:

• A newsletter "Creative Summer Notes"
• A camp calendar
• Your Carpool Placard (if carpool is your dismissal option)
• Bus Rules and Schedule (if bus is your dismissal option)
• Lunch ordering information and Menu
• Class Schedules - Creative Campers (ages 7-13)

Most of these documents will also be available on our Creative Summer Documents page.

Creative Summer is NOT a peanut-free camp. Families are permitted to pack peanut products in their camper’s lunch and snacks. However, we do have precautions in place to protect our campers with nut allergies.

As a policy, none of our cooking classes use recipes the include peanuts or any other type of nuts as an ingredient. However, we cannot guarantee that items were not manufactured in a plant that processes nut products.

Additionally, we have a peanut-free bin that campers can put their lunches in to be refrigerated and a Peanut-Free Zone in the Dining Room. This is a designated space where campers can sit during lunch to ensure they are not exposed to peanut or other nut products.

Creative Summer offers families the chance to pre-order lunch for their campers through the Holton-Arms food service provider, Meriwether Godsey.

The Creative Summer lunch forms will be available beginning Monday, May 11, 2020

Please visit our Lunch page for more information.

The Carnival Showcase is a celebration that takes place after camp on the last Thursday and Friday of each three-week session.

Thursday’s Carnival events take place in the Lewis Theater and begin with a Musical Revue performed by the Creative Sixes and Creative Sevens . Then two of the Creative Campers classes, Rising Stars (grades 2-4) and Curtain Call (grades 5-8), each present their version of a well-known theatrical musical.

Friday’s exciting Carnival events for the Creative Campers take place all around the Holton-Arms campus, and feature dance, music, and acting performances; a showcase of the visual arts; a Sports Hall of Fame; culinary tastings; class demonstrations; and a basketball game complete with halftime show.

Food service is available, provided by Meriwether Godsey.

Further information and a full schedule of activities will be sent home during each session of camp.

Session 1: Thursday and Friday, July 9 and 10
Session 2: Thursday and Friday, July 30 and 31

For more information about Carnival or other functions, please visit our Special Events page.

Creative Summer is closed Friday, July 3, 2020, in recognition of the Independence Day Holiday.

Emergency Closure Policy
In the event the Holton-Arms School administration deems it necessary or is required to close the School’s premises because of inclement weather or other circumstances beyond its control, Creative Summer cannot guarantee the make-up of lost time. Though we may schedule make-up hours where possible, camp time lost may be void. No refunds or credits will be issued in the event of a weather or other uncontrollable event or closure.

Emergency Closure Notification
Camp closures will be posted on the Holton-Arms website and on a recorded message on the Creative Summer office phone line at 301-365-6003.