Summer at Sage Unveils New Hours, Lightning Athletics Academy

Summer at Sage will expand its popular Camp Sage program with longer operating hours and spin off its middle school sports programming into the newly formed Lightning Athletics Academy to better serve Orange County families in 2024.
 
Students entering grades 5-8 in the Fall 2024 can choose to attend either Camp Sage or the Lightning Athletics Academy. Both camps will run on the Sage Hill campus from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM Monday to Friday. Families can choose to extend their camper’s day at no additional cost with a pool party and outdoor games until 4:00 PM. Camps will run in five weeklong sessions from June 24 to July 26, 2024.
 
Under this expanded schedule, campers will still choose morning and afternoon activities each week. FLIK café employees will also continue a Teaching Kitchen session during the lunch hour (the Teaching Kitchen is for Camp Sage only, but a regular lunch is also provided for Lightning Athletic Academy campers). 
 
“Summer at Sage is excited to now offer families the convenience of running for a full workday, including longer courses and workshops that allow middle schoolers to really dive into the Sage Hill experience,” Director of Auxiliary Programs Lynette Swanson said. “We look forward to seeing our returning campers again and welcoming families who are new to Camp Sage.”

Camp Sage offers workshops in a variety of topics like nature writing, journalism, art, coding, speech & debate, science, making music and more.
 
During the same hours as Camp Sage, Lightning Athletics Academy is intended for intermediate to advanced student athletes who plan to play their sport(s) in high school. Lightning Athletics coaches will lead this summer camp at our athletic facilities. Participating sports include Baseball, Basketball, Flag Football, Girls' Lacrosse, Soccer, Tennis, Volleyball and Water Polo/Swim. 

“We’ll be connecting with middle school athletes who have already invested substantial time and effort in their sports,” Director of Athletics Megan Cid said. “They will have the opportunity to work with our coaches, learning the Lightning way before ninth grade and hopefully continue their academic and athletic career at Sage. We will introduce more athletes to the Sage Hill Athletics community while working with other athletes with the same drive and determination.”

Lightning Athletics Academy will also give middle school athletes access to train with high-level coaches and some of their potential teammates.

Additionally, these summer programs help coaches better understand their individual athletes’ goals and how to best motivate them before they graduate to high school.

“Our vision for Lightning Athletics Academy is to continue to introduce Sage Hill as a strong academic and athletics environment,” Summer at Sage Co-Director Issac Sierra said. “We want this school to be a place where student athletes find success.”

As Head Coach of Girls’ Soccer, Sierra said having up to four additional summers with student athletes will give coaches more opportunities to show families their commitment to mentorship.

“Those summers will make a difference in building that trust and understanding between coaches and their athletes,” Sierra said. “I want my team to know I’m willing to go to bat for them.”

For more information or to register for Camp Sage or the Lightning Athletics Academy, please visit www.sagehillschool.org/summer.