“Leadership Essentials is phenomenal. What an upgrade from DVD-based training! The videos will be a huge hit with today’s generation of staff. Having staff participate in these modules throughout the spring will get them thinking about camp way ahead of time. I think it will also have the benefit of retaining staff between hire and arrival.

Using online training also shows that a camp is truly professional and forward-thinking. The videos are top-notch and the site is clean and easy to navigate. I also love the feature of being able to upload the camp’s own documents. What a difference between Chris’s site and nearly all staff manuals (and as a standards visitor, I’ve seen a lot of them).”

Gretchen Vaughn
Life & Leadership Coach for Camp Professionals
www.outofthemountains.com

“As Directors of a Christian camp, we believe that the most important job we have is hiring and training our counselors. They create Alpine each summer for our campers. We want outstanding, high caliber, fun Christian college young men and we want to equip them with the best professional training in the country. That is why we have relied on Chris Thurber for a number of years at our Staff Training. Having experienced his energetic, positive, practical seminars in person, it was a no brainer for us to sign on with Expert Online Training.

Hopefully, the young men we hire sign on because they are pumped about camp, ready to serve boys and have a profound positive impact on boys’ lives. What EOT did was allow them to think about how they were going to accomplish this before they even arrived at camp. I believe it gave our staff a huge leg up during Staff Training and we will definitely be using EOT again.”

Glenn Breazeale
Director, Alpine Camp for Boys
www.alpinecamp.com

“One of the strengths of Leadership Essentials is the ability to use the videos as part of staff training before our first day of staff training at camp. All of the staff are required to watch specific videos and take the online quizzes to verify that they understand the principles being taught. This gives us a head start before new hires arrive at camp for our pre-camp staff training. It also builds unity of vision by providing a foundation of camp rules and expectations.”

George & Paula DeTellis
Directors, Camp Woodhaven
www.campwoodhaven.com

“Chris works at camp with children and staff most of the summer, so I know the material in Leadership Essentials is field-tested, practical, and effective. This guy walks the walk. I also love how the video training modules combine Chris’s expertise as a psychologist, parent, and camp professional with just the right touch of humor. I can think of no better way to prepare any day or resident camp staff for the job ahead.”

Gene Clark
YMCA Camp Belknap
www.campbelknap.org

“They’ve got Dr. Phil, we’ve got Dr. Chris! – (Thurber that is.) Chris has always wanted staff at his YMCA camp to have a head-start on training while their enthusiasm is really high…before they even get to camp. And he’s sharing the result with other camps as a subscription service that lets you pick which online video training modules you want to require your staff to view before camp starts. The service even gives you a real-time roster of each of your staff members’ progress! The range of topics includes things you need to cover but usually don’t have the expertise. The presenters are a who’s who of popular conference speakers; but filming them in the outdoors and including “real life” camp footage (that would make anyone eager for camp to start) should make the lessons “stick”. Chris has a similar setup [called Medical Essentials] for camp nurses and doctors, too.”

Gary Forster
Gary Forster, LLC
www.garyforster.com

“I just wanted to thank you for the quality and information in the videos you worked on. My initial reaction when we were instructed to watch the videos was skeptical; I was doubtful that I could learn much from a video that I did not already know from experience. After watching them so far, however, and completing the quizzes, I have found there is a great deal to learn and discover about counseling. Your integration of engaging strategies and effective resolutions was quite helpful. The homesickness training especially, an issue I have personally encountered and seen time and again among fellow campers, was particularly informative. Again, thank you for your work, and I can’t wait to finish the training!”

Drew Glicker
Counselor, Frost Valley
www.frostvalley.org

“Leadership Essentials represents a great leap forward for all day and resident summer camps. By providing online video training modules, Chris has put our industry at the cutting edge of staff training. The video modules are concise, engaging and well produced. Thank you, Chris.”

Daniel Zenkel
Founder and Former CEO, The Camp Group, LLC
Managing Principal, The Camp Professionals
www.thecampprofessionals.com

Vermont State Parks used Expert Online Training to augment our annual three-day Park Manager training in 2016. As an organization, we recognized the value and need for a continuing education program for our front-line managers. At the conclusion of our spring training in early-May, we assigned each park manager eight pre-selected modules to complete by July 1st. EOT was a success with our Park Managers; the course content was stimulating, thought provoking and reemphasized key concepts learned at our three-day training in May. Feedback from the field was very positive and we consider the addition of EOT a valuable component of our 2016 training program.

Robert Peterson, Vermont State Parks
www.vtstateparks.com

“More than any other educational tool we’ve used in the past, adding Expert Online Training set a tone of professionalism and raised expectations, which I’m delighted to say our staff rose to. The staff were diligent, attentive, and confident. Your content, having been refined through years of direct experience in the field, makes a profound difference year after year.”

Andrea Zapcic
Director, City of Rahway, Department of Parks & Recreation
www.cityofrahway.com/recreation.htm

We’ve been using expert online training for many years. First, it helps cut down pre-camp time. Second, it gets everyone on the same page before they even arrive. My staff enjoy the modules because they’re in short segments that can be completed at their own pace. The quizzes are great because they really do have to watch the videos. It’s made a huge difference in staff leadership and professionalism.

John Dovic, High Meadows Camp
www.highmeadowscamp.org