Club U Handbook
Club U

Registration for Summer 2026 will open on February 9th.

Summer weekly offerings will be viewable on each program’s page starting in mid-January.

Online registration closes as soon as all spots are filled. If the camp is not full, registration will close the Thursday before camp starts. We may take phone registrations until Friday before 9AM. Contact Youth Education at 801-581-6984 or youth@utah.edufor availability.

Gain access to early registration for summer programming before it is open to the public by donating to the Parents Club. All Parents Club Donations are used to support our upcoming scholarship efforts. See scholarship section for more information.

We currently offer a 15% discount on tuition for all current U employees. Please note that this discount will conclude after summer 2026, so we encourage you to take advantage of it while it’s still available.

If a week is full for your camper’s age group, please join the waitlist. You can do so by clicking “join the waitlist” where the “add to cart” option would be.

Waitlists operate on a first come first served basis. As seats become available, all individuals on the waitlist will be contacted via email notifying them of openings in the corresponding camp. To claim the spot, follow the instructions within the email. You will remain on the waitlist in case another spot opens and will only be removed upon request. For more information, please visit our waitlist FAQ.

Our waitlist is mostly dependent on cancellations and therefore extremely variable. We cannot predict if and when spots become available as each year is different.

Drops (cancellations) made four (4) full weeks prior to the first day of the camp will be given a full refund. Refunds will not be authorized after this date, as activities and supplies have been paid for based on the number of campers registered. Refunds will also not be authorized in the event of a dismissal. Please call the office if you have any extenuating circumstances. For more information, please visit our Refunds Policy.

All camp and classes are designed for the specific age group listed. Participants who are enrolled outside of the specified age range will be notified of removal from the program. If you have questions or concerns regarding this policy, please contact us before you register your camper, so we can work together to ensure the correct placement and avoid the potential removal of your camper.

If your Club U camper has a late (summer/post-summer) birthday and will be separated from peers in their same school grade (especially for those ages 9 and 11), please contact the office and we can discuss options.

During the registration process, you will be asked to provide a list of contacts for safety purposes. This will include the primary guardian (person who completes registration), an emergency contact, and a list of people authorized to pick up your camper. This list is tied to the guardian account and will apply to all campers registered under them.

It is important to provide at least one emergency contact/authorized adult to your account in case of an emergency, even if this individual will not be picking up your child.

Only the primary guardian, emergency contact, and people listed as authorized pick-ups on the account will be allowed to sign a camper out of camp. Photo ID is also required at pick-up EVERY DAY as confirmation of identity. Whether it is your first time picking up or your 74th, a camper will not be released to you until we can verify your identity and match it to our authorized pick-up list.

The primary guardian can add or remove names from this list at any time by calling the Youth Education office at 801-581-6984. Counselors are NOT permitted to add or remove names from the list and should instruct you to contact the office or speak with a member of leadership.

Since individuals on this list need a valid photo ID for pick up, if you would like to add someone who does not have a form of legal photo ID, please contact the office to discuss options.

When registering online, you will be prompted to sign the liability waiver and provide additional participant information. If you need to update information or if you completed registration via phone, you can sign the waivers and provide participant information.

New waivers must be completed each semester, for each camper, but will cover all weeks of camp they are enrolled in for the summer semester.

Our camps often have additional 3rd party waivers for weekly activities that must be completed by parents/guardians. Any required waivers will be sent in the reminder email, and counselors will follow up daily to ensure they are completed.

The primary guardian will be sent an email the Thursday prior to the start of the camp week. It will contain important information including an itinerary of the week’s events, what to bring, and any additional special notes.

If your camper has friends or siblings (of the same age) who they would like to be in a group with, you can submit a buddy request by responding to the reminder email by Friday at 9AM. If your request is sent after the designated date and time, your request will likely not be accommodated as groups are finalized. We allow buddy requests for Club U Classic (5-9) and Jr. Varsity (10-11), but not for our Varsity (12-14) camp as they operate as one large unit, and campers may freely engage with each other.

We do our best to accommodate these requests with at least one buddy; however, they are never guaranteed. The more campers on a buddy list, the harder it is to keep them together while making our groups balanced and safe.

We cannot accommodate buddy requests (even siblings) if the campers' ages are more than 1 year apart, or campers are enrolled in separate programs (i.e. JV and Varsity).

Campers may be dropped off starting at 8am every day. We do not allow early drop-offs. You are welcome to arrive before 8am, but you must remain with your camper until our staff are ready to begin check-in.

The camp arrival window is 8am-8:15am each day, though check-in typically lasts until 8:30am on Mondays.

Club U drop off takes place at the lower section of the Presidents Circle lawn. Each group for Club U Classic (ages 5-9) will be assigned a number and corresponding tree on the lawn. This spot will remain the same for drop-off and pick-up the entire week. Jr. Varsity (ages 10-11) and Varsity (ages 12-14) will check in campers in a more clustered format slightly offset from the younger campers.

In the event of severe weather, drop-off will be on the 3rd floor of the Alfred Emery Building (AEB) on Presidents Circle.

Each Monday, there will be a check-in table where staff will let you know your camper’s group number, counselor name, and show you where to go. At this time, we will also confirm that you have completed all the required camp forms. Adults and campers will then proceed to their group/counselor to be introduced and given any important info for the week. This is also a great time to ask the counselor any questions and confirm they have all needed health information.

On all remaining days that week, proceed directly to the assigned group and check your camper in with their counselor.

Club U leadership will be available during camper arrival every day to address concerns, answer questions, or just say hey. If you miss Monday and need your camper’s group information, see a member of leadership (typically on the sidewalk at the top of the grassy space).

Camp groups are typically on Presidents Circle until 8:30am, though this is dependent on the day’s activities. Since camp schedules vary each day, late arrivals are difficult to accommodate. If you are running late, please call the Youth Education office at 801-581-6984 to coordinate the best drop-off option. If you will be late more than once, please discuss these circumstances with the counselor, leadership, or the Youth Education office.

Out of respect to our partners and other campers, we will not wait for campers before departing for activities and field trips. We understand that things happen, but please be mindful of our staff and the effect late arrivals can have on them and other campers.

Campers return to Presidents Circle by 3pm each day and the pick-up window is 3pm-3:15pm. If you arrive to pick up your camper and the group has yet to return, we likely are running late returning from a field trip. If groups will be later than 3:15pm, a member of leadership will be present to let you know.

Campers who are not picked up by 3:15pm will be moved to Lounge so that we can begin the afternoon staff meeting.

If your camper is sent to Lounge for a late pick-up, you will be contacted and required to register with payment.

Camper pick-up and drop-off will always be on Presidents Circle. Proceed directly to your camper’s group and check them out with their counselor. Remember to always bring a photo ID!

In the event of severe weather, pick-up will be on the 3rd floor of the Alfred Emery Building (AEB) on Presidents Circle.

At pick-up, staff may discuss any circumstances or situations from the day that the adult should be made aware of. If the conversation requires more than a simple chat or escalates, leadership will be involved to ensure the counselor can safely check out the remaining campers.

Leadership will be present at check out every day to address any concerns or answer questions.

Though not always possible, we will try to have Club U Lost & Found on Presidents Circle at the end of each day for you and your camper to look through.

Only the primary guardian, emergency contact, and anyone listed as authorized pick-ups on the account will be allowed to sign a camper out of camp. Photo ID is required

If someone attempts to pick up your camper and is not on the list, staff will call the guardian and/or emergency contact to confirm the addition of that individual to the list. Staff will not allow any unauthorized individual to pick up your camper until we are given the guardian’s verbal confirmation.

If you need to add someone to the pick-up list, please call the Youth Education office at 801-581-6984. Counselors are NOT permitted to add or remove names from the list.

Club U Lounge (aftercare) is available for Club U campers every day from 3:15pm-6pm and campers can be picked up any time within this window. Campers will be provided with small, pre-packaged snacks each afternoon.

Lounge typically can be found on the Presidents Circle lawn. In the event of severe weather and on Friday movie days, lounge campers will be on the 3rd floor of the Alfred Emery Building (AEB).

Registration for Lounge is offered as a 2-day or 5-day option and can be added at any time by calling the office.

Campers who are not registered for Lounge but are not picked up by 3:15pm will be moved to Lounge and can be checked out with the Lounge staff. If your camper is sent to Lounge for a late pick-up, you will be contacted and required to register with payment.

Jr. Varsity (10-11) and Varsity (12-14) campers are allowed to check themselves out with permission from the primary guardian. You can select this option for your camper during online registration or by calling the Youth Education office. Only the primary guardian and/or emergency contact may request self-checkout. This selection is tied to the account and will apply to all weeks the camper attends camp unless otherwise requested.

Campers with self-checkout are not permitted to leave before 3PM.

Since camp schedules vary each day, early departures are difficult to accommodate. If you need to pick up your camper early, please call the Youth Education office to coordinate the best option. Remember that we are often commuting back to campus at the end of the day and cannot accommodate pick-ups during those transition/travel times.

Out of respect to our partners and other campers, we will not adjust our activity and field trip schedule/timing for early pick-ups. If you arrange to pick up your camper at a 3rd party location and have not arrived by the scheduled bus departure time, you will need to meet us at camp to pick them up upon our return.

Parking is available and free in any angled spot on Presidents Circle from 7:45am-8:45am and 2:45pm-3:45pm on camp days. From 8:45am-2:45pm, all spots return to pay-by-phone and are monitored closely by campus parking enforcement. Leaving your vehicle unattended without payment during this time leaves you vulnerable to being ticketed. Campus parking enforcement operates independently of Club U, and Youth Education has no authority to get tickets reversed. Parking tickets may be appealed through Commuter Services.

If you receive a ticket during the free parking windows outlined above, please let the office or leadership know and we can assist in resolving the issue.

We aim to provide a fulfilling and meaningful experience for all participants. However, our staff cannot provide one-on-one support because they do not receive specialized disability training.

Complete the Additional Participant Information form and provide as much information as possible to allow for a positive camp experience.

If your child requires special accommodation or you have questions about their participation in camp, contact the Youth Education office to be connected to the Club U Camp Director.

Contact the Office of Equal Opportunity for more information on available accommodations.

The weekly reminder email will contain specific information on what to bring to camp each day and specific needs for other days. Counselors will also do their best to remind you of needed items for the next day and check that campers have their things at the start of the day.

Label everything!!! This helps us return items to their rightful owners.

Pokémon cards (or other trading cards/items) are welcome at camp; however, staff will monitor the trading of cards and may ask campers to keep them at home if issues arise. If there are specific cards of high value, please keep those at home.

Our staff do their best to collect any misplaced items when leaving a location and will add any found items to our lost & found. That said, their primary focus is on the safety of campers, and items may sometimes be left behind or get lost.

Club U Classic (5-9) and Jr. Varsity (10-11) will receive one Club U camp T-shirt for each week of camp, with a maximum of 3 shirts over the summer. Shirts are typically distributed on Mondays of each week. If your camper does not receive a shirt and needs one, please let leadership know and we can get one to them.

While campers are welcome to wear the shirts each day, it is most important for our younger campers to wear them on Field Trip days so Club U and 3rd party staff can identify them.

• Club U T-shirt (field trip days)
• Backpack
• Water bottle
• Sunscreen
• Lunch & small snack
• Shoes with a back strap
• Swim gear (pool days): swimsuit, towel
  • Optional: rash guard, goggles, life jacket
• Hat and/or sunglasses

Campers should not bring items of high monetary or sentimental value as these items often get lost or damaged.

All weapons, drugs, alcohol, and tobacco products (including e-cigarettes or vapes) are prohibited from Youth Education programs. If a participant is caught with any prohibited items, they will be removed from the class, and no refund will be issued. Please see our Drugs and Alcohol Policy for more information.

At Youth Education, we strongly discourage participants from bringing any personal electronic devices. Not only are they vulnerable to being taken, forgotten, and broken, they discourage personal interaction and participation. Participants that bring electronic devices and accessories do so at their own risk. If participants do bring these items, staff will ask that they keep these devices in their bags and out of sight throughout the camp day. If your participant fails to meet this requirement, our staff may hold on to items until pick-up. We want participants to interact with each other and the staff while being active for the best camp experience possible! If you need to reach your child, please call the Youth Education office at 801-581-6984.

Items that are left behind and found by staff or other campers will be added to the lost & found. We will attempt to have the items on Presidents Circle during check out each day. If it is not possible, we will have it set out the next day or can locate the item and return it to your camper directly.

We typically clear (donate) the lost & found halfway through the summer to make room for new items. We will do our best to let guardians and campers know beforehand so we can return as many items to their owners as possible. We will also attempt to hold on to seemingly valuable or sentimental items.

Please send your camper with a labeled sunscreen bottle every day! Our staff carry small individual sunscreen packs in case campers forget or misplace their sunscreen.

If your camper tends to burn easily, please inform the counselor. If you have particular concerns about sun protection and/or the policies below, please speak to Club U leadership.

Club U staff conduct sunscreen breaks for application regularly throughout the day, especially when returning to the outdoors. The breaks will be more frequent during multi-hour outdoor activities. Groups will also take short breaks in the shade or indoors when activities are outdoors.

For safety and youth protection reasons, our staff do not physically apply sunscreen to campers below the neck. Our counselors will visually observe application and provide verbal guidance/reminders when needed. Campers may also receive assistance from a buddy of the same age or direct relative.

For face/ears/neck applications, campers are encouraged to apply themselves and given verbal guidance from staff to ensure coverage. If needed, staff can assist with making sure the campers do so thoroughly.

For outdoor swimming activities when campers are in swim apparel, we strongly encourage you to send your camper with swim shirts, hats, or any protective gear.

Please send your camper with a medium-large, labeled, and reusable water bottle every day.

We do not have our own source of drinking water or private restrooms for campers. We utilize bathrooms and water fountains in the campus buildings nearby.

Counselors will conduct frequent water and bathroom breaks and will also review bathroom expectations at the beginning of the week including the “rule of three”.

Read the full Contagious Illness Policy.

Parents/guardians should not send campers to program activities if they are exhibiting signs of illness.

Staff will send campers home if they exhibit signs of illness.

Parents should ensure their camper's vaccinations are up to date.

All camper medications and medical conditions must be reported to the program prior to attending program activities. This ensures that staff are adequately prepared to respond to health and medical issues.

We do not issue refunds for absences.

The Club U medication policy is changing for the summer of 2026. See the Youth Education Medication Policy for the latest updates.

Club U counselors and leadership are trained in First aid, CPR, and AED use on a biannual basis and carry a First Aid Kit stocked with essential supplies. They can provide the level of care they are trained to provide. In the case staff cannot provide care, guardians/emergency contacts will be notified, and if needed, emergency services will be called. An incident report will be completed any time care is provided.

All camp staff also carry physical copies of medical emergency response procedures & policies including common injuries (cuts, scrapes, nosebleeds, etc), serious injuries, illnesses/symptoms, and concussions.

All camp staff are trained in and carry physical copies of emergency procedures with them at all times. All procedures follow the University of Utah’s Emergency Response Guide. The guide includes response to situations such as severe weather, evacuations, active shooters, fires, earthquakes, and more.

Camp groups are created in accordance with the following ACA recommended ratios:

• Ages 5-6: 1 staff, 6 campers
• Ages 7-8: 1 staff, 8 campers
• Ages 9 & up: 1 staff, 10 campers

Groups are also organized by age with the intention of keeping campers of similar developmental stages together.

Camp operations always follow the “rule of three”. The “rule of three” specifies that there should always be at least three people present — for example, one employee and two or more children, or two employees and one child. In any instance that a staff member ends up alone in private with a camper, they are to move to a public space immediately and call for assistance. Afterward, they will complete an incident report and notify leadership.

All campers must bring lunch every day. If a camper forgets their lunch, we will attempt to contact the guardian/emergency contact to bring them one. If not possible, we will provide some food items from the stock of pre-packaged Lounge snacks.

Club U is NOT nut-free, as campus and our 3rd party locations are not nut-free. That said, we encourage families to avoid packing nut products in camper lunches to help keep our campers safe. Please ensure all allergies, along with treatment procedures in the event of an allergic reaction, are noted in your camper's health information.

Our daily schedules are made to maintain a consistent lunch time for younger campers, though we are more flexible with this time among our older campers. Counselors eat lunch along with campers and will do their best to monitor camper eating and encourage them to fuel their bodies before participating in activities.

Each week of camp will include several field trips to 3rd party locations of varying distances. Bathroom breaks are always conducted before departing for field trips, and rules/expectations are reviewed with campers before participating. How campers participate (large groups, buddies, etc) will vary by age/location and counselor discretion in accordance with the “rule of three”.

All groups will swim at least once each week of camp. All pools that we visit are 3rd party facilities with their own lifeguard staff.

Each camper’s swim ability and comfortability is very different. If you have specific swim concerns regarding life jackets, water depth, or pool areas, please include notes in your camper information and check with your camper’s counselor each week.

The specific pools we visit will vary, but the ones most frequented are noted below:

• UofU Campus Natatorium
• Salt Lake Sports Complex (Steiner)
• Cottonwood Heights Rec Center
• Kearns Oquirrh Park Fitness Center
• Murray Aquatic Center

Life jackets

• If your camper needs a life jacket, we encourage you to send one to camp attached to their backpack on swim days as this is the BEST way to ensure that your camper will be wearing one.
• Most pools we visit have facility life jackets that counselors can distribute to campers, but we cannot guarantee that one will be available. The campus natatorium, specifically, does not provide them, so we keep a stash of them on the pool deck for campers to use.

Pool Safety

• We require that a certain number of counselors (based on the age of the camper group) participate in swimming with campers, and all campers are also assigned swim buddies of a similar ability level as additional layers of safety.

Locker rooms

• Campers are encouraged to change into swimsuits before departing for the pool, as the locker rooms can be congested at certain facilities. Those who choose to wait are welcome to change in the locker rooms. Counselors change in private stalls on a rotating basis so that campers are still being supervised appropriately.
• Locker room policies and procedures follow the “rule of three”.
• Our staff will not assist campers with dressing unless all options have been exhausted. Counselors will use verbal prompts and visuals to encourage/assist campers who have difficulty getting dressed. In the case that physical assistance is needed. Staff will ensure they are in a well-lit, space with other individuals and use as little contact as possible. They will then complete an incident report for camp records and will let an adult know that they assisted with dressing at pick-up.

Most counselor and guest led activities will take place on the Presidents Circle lawn or the classrooms on the 3rd floor of the Alfred Emery Building (AEB).

We strive to incorporate campus and campus resources into our programming as much as possible, though the frequency is variable. We are always looking for more opportunities, so if you have connections to campus resources or departments that want to work with youth populations, let us know so we can get connected!

We use school buses for most off-campus activities. We contract with a local school district that provides their buses and drivers. Buses are by far the most expensive component of Club U. Because of this, groups will often use campus shuttles or walk if remaining on campus.

It is important to remember that being active outdoors is a large element of summer camp, and walking to/from activities is a part of that. We train our staff to safely walk with campers and cross the street for this very reason. If your camper has specific medical needs that prevent them from taking longer walks, or are prone to heat-related injuries, please let our Youth Education office or leadership staff know and we can talk about accommodation.

Club U addresses behavior in accordance with the Youth Education Behavior Management Policy

Youth Education has a zero-tolerance policy. Any participant who is threatening the safety of themselves, other participants, or the staff will be immediately removed, and no refund will be issued.

The Youth Education policy in handling disruptive situations is as follows:

• First incident: Staff will discuss the situation with the participant.
• Second incident: Staff will contact a guardian, and the participant may be dismissed for the day.
• Repeated incident: Youth Education staff will contact the guardian and the participant will be dismissed with no refund.

Please provide any specific information that may help your camper be successful in the additional participant info form.

At pick-up, staff may discuss any situations or behavioral concerns they have. If the conversation requires more than a simple chat or escalates, leadership will be involved to ensure the counselor can safely check out the remaining campers.

For behavioral situations that do not pose a safety threat, leadership will communicate with guardians about ongoing concerns and work to resolve them before dismissal.

If you have immediate concerns regarding the behavior of camp staff or campers, please call the office or speak to the Club U Camp Director.

If you need to relay important information to your camper while they are at camp, please contact the Youth Education office at 801-581-6984 and they can pass along the information or create a line of direct communication to your camper. The presence of cell phones and smart watches can be disruptive to camp and create confusion for our staff who no longer receive important info directly. See our devices policy.