The President's Blog

With the final weekend of the 84th season of Interlochen Arts Camp behind us, the sense of accomplishment and achievement that we feel is an interesting counterpoint to the hope and anticipation that occurred just six short weeks ago on opening night. Looking at the body of work created and performed by nearly 2,800 students, we feel a great sense of pride--and we hope they do too.

One might think that two weeks--or three or six--wouldn't be enough time to achieve something of such meaning and value. Something in which each student’s artistic voice is heard in distinctive ways. Yet this is what happens here; and we’ve seen it again this past weekend. It’s a rare thing, really, to have such a rich and intensive environment full of creative, interesting and motivated students from around the globe. What we see happen, from day one to the concluding performances, readings, gallery displays and the like, is profound.

Despite not knowing many of the other students prior to coming here, these young artists quickly become actors and musicians performing together, critiquing artwork, musical compositions, poems and films. The volume of experience--and quality work--that we’ve seen this weekend tells us that a process of personal identification with and in the arts has taken root, and of course, we hope it grows through the lifetime of these students and throughout all those they touch.

A student asked me in one of my “meet the president” sessions what I enjoyed most about being president of Interlochen. One of my favorite responsibilities is observing the classes and rehearsals, which I get to do all too rarely. Seeing the chemistry between great artist teachers and eager students, and the results that they are able to achieve, is perhaps the most satisfying part of Arts Camp.

We often hear the cliché that we change lives, but after watching these six weeks one realizes that this is indeed what happens here. Few leave here unaware of what happened to them. Yes, the routine of friends and Facebook will quickly return, but the memories and appreciation for the all of the arts will never fade for the students who joined us this summer.

The horrific events last weekend in Norway are a reminder to those of us entrusted with the care of young people that we must be ever-diligent in our safety efforts. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims, families and entire country of Norway. Student safety and the safety of other campus guests are top priorities at Interlochen.

In the past few years, Interlochen made significant investments in campus safety, security and awareness.  A law enforcement professional with many years of police force experience, Julie Houser, heads a team of trained professionals, providing response and assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The camp life division staff is also trained in camp emergency procedures and they play a supervisory role across the campus.  We restrict access to the residence areas, but as a national cultural destination our 1200 acre campus area is open, and we have many people visit the main mall area, rehearsals and performances - parents, tourists, concert attendees etc.  Many campus access roads are gated at all times and others are gated during certain times of the day and always at night, restricting vehicle access onto campus to one entrance.

During major concert events we have a contract with the Michigan State Police who park at the front entrance for traffic control, and MSP officers patrol the grounds around the venue during major events.

Our multiple emergency alert systems - public address system, phone system alert, cell, email and text - throughout campus have been regularly tested and used for drills.  These systems are part of an extensive emergency plan that has been developed in cooperation with the Michigan State Police, Grand Traverse County Sheriff's office, and the Federal Department of Homeland Security, a plan that is routinely reviewed and updated.