Illinois Youth Police Camp gives teenage boys and girls a disciplined path to success
At 28 years old, Leslie Hardin is carving out a successful professional career.
She currently is the technology assistant for Madison School District No. 12, a girl basketball and track coach and owns her own business, Everything Beautifull, which creates websites and fliers and marketing materials such as T-shirts, among other endeavors.
And she credits the Team Illinois Youth Police Camp for helping put her on her current path. Hardin is a 2009 graduation of the week-long camp, which is aimed and helping instill discipline and other core values into the teenage attendees.
“The camp definitely helped plant seeds of ambition and fortitude to pursue all my endeavors,” said Hardin, a 2013 Madison High School graduate. “I think the main things the camp teaches are teamwork, commitment and pride. I think those three principles are the most relevant from the camp. I feel a lot of people — especially my generation — lack those team building skills.
“Discipline is a big thing at the camp, such as waking up early, fixing your bed. It just enforced that theory of discipline and doing things a certain way so you can get used to it and discipline your mind.”
Illinois State Police Sgt. Calvin “Buddy” Dye Jr. oversees and coordinates the camp, which started in 2006. He describes it as a week-long paramilitary residency program for kids who may need some direction.
Dye said camp cadets generally fall into one of three categories: A small number of them are sent by a court ordered; a larger number are youth who want a career in law enforcement or want to go into the military; and the third group gets recommended by educators, because, Dye said, they “are struggling with authority in school and need discipline.”
Watching the young boys and girls enter the camp as a struggling cadet and finish as a polished graduate is very satisfying, he says.
“That’s why we do it. We’ve had kids say the camp inspired them and changed their lives,” said Dye, who has been camp coordinator since 2017. “The greatest satisfaction is that graduation day when they get that certificate, shake the staff’s hand and smile ... that’s when we know we’ve done our job and that it’s all well worth it.”
Hardin represents just one success story from the camp.
Dye also spoke of Brayten Webb from New Athens, who attended the camp three years ago and now entering the U.S. Army. Another young woman from Collinsville who graduated from the camp is in the U.S. Marine Corps.
16 years and counting. The camp basics
This year will mark the camp’s 16th year. It again will take place from at Principia College in Elsah, Illinois, which is approximately a one-hour drive north of Belleville on the Mississippi River.
Check in is at 1 p.m. Sunday, July 16, at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. From there, the cadets are bused to Principia to begin their week-long journey, which concludes with a graduation ceremony Saturday, July 22.
Application are taken on a first come basis and the deadline is Thursday, June 15.
Campers range in age 13-17 and include both females and males from all parts of the metro-east, including Belleville, Fairview Heights, Swansea, Madison, Venice, East Saint Louis, Cahokia Heights, Washington Park, New Athens, Granite City, Highland, Edwardsville, O’Fallon, Shiloh and Collinsville, along with St. Louis.
The cost is $20 for the entire week and includes three full course meals to include breakfast, lunch and dinner, along with snacks during “squad time.”
Dye said if a young person cannot afford the camp, there’s a certain number they can sponsor and handle the $20 fee.
Prior to the COVID, Dye said the camp would have up to 80 cadets. The camp resumed in the summer of 2022 after two years off due to the pandemic and Dye expects numbers to increase back to normal amounts this summer.
“We have a diverse group,” Dye said. “A lot of our former cadets who have gone into the military tell us this camp really helped them and got them ready for boot camp — they knew what to expect.”
Previously, the camp took place at the Army Depot off Illinois 3 in Granite City from 2006-08; from 2009-13 at the abandoned Alton Mental Health facility; and from 2014-present at Principia College. Dye has taken part in every camp dating back to 2006.
The camp does not receive state funding, Dye noted, and works solely off donations from businesses and people in the community.
What is the Team Illinois Youth Police Camp?
Dye said cadets arrive at the week-long paramilitary camp on Sunday and almost instantaneously find out what camp life is all about.
“We set the tone immediately,” said Dye said. “If they have bad body language, we let them know we’re not going to lower our standards — they have to raise their standards. You’ll have some at check in Sunday when we start correcting their body language, they’ll try to go back to catch up with mom, or dad or their guardian ... again, we set the tone early.”
No electronics are allowed. The cadets’ bags are searched upon arrival to make sure they do not attempt to sneak in a phone, tablet, etc., as well as any drugs or alcohol.
Cadets wake up at 5:30 a.m. every day and have to make their beds military style with the folds on the corners. Then, the officers put cadets through physical training beginning around 5:45 or 6 a.m. From there, the cadets go back to their rooms to regroup and go to breakfast.
They then spend several hours in the classroom and listen to speakers on a range of topics, including cyber bullying. Dye has a representative from the Bank of Edwardsville discuss money managing skills and the cadets receive instruction on job interviewing skills and resume writing skills.
Cadets hear talks about suicide prevention, coping with the loss of loved and drug addiction prevention. Dye also has an officer from the state police unit who works gangs and drugs talk to the cadets about the negative effects of joining gangs and peer pressure.
There’s a dress code, too. Cadets where a camp shirt, khaki pants and a hat. Shirts must be tucked in with a belt to ensure pants are not saggy. Hats must be worn straight on and can’t be on backwards or to the side. They march single file.
Boy campers sleep in boy-only dorms with a male present and girls stay in girls-only dorms with a female present. Overall, the camp has 20 supervisors.
“They always have eyes on them,” Dye said. “If they fall asleep in class, we pull them outside for some physical training. The logic behind all this is when they get out in corporate America, whether they become a police officer or work at a grocery store, they will face challenges and adversity. The object of the camp is to teach them how to control their emotions under stress when things don’t go their way. Intentionally, we put them under a tremendous amount of stress and adversity.
“Come Wednesday, to see the transformation in some of them is awesome, like the main ones who didn’t want to be there at first.”
‘Squad time’ and fun time
The evenings are reserved for “squad time.” Dye said cadets are broken into groups of eight to 10 with three to four officers overseeing each squad. Cadets and officers then sit down at a roundtable, share snacks and open up about anything related to life.
“Some of the challenges these kids face are inconceivable. Things at home, trauma in their neighborhood ... this is where we have therapy,” Dye said. “Some of our officers have had rough upbringings and they open up to the kids as well. Typically, after squad time Sunday and Monday night, by Tuesday, the relationship between the cadet and officers changes. They show up maybe not liking officers but by Tuesday morning, they see we’re normal people.”
The camp has a fun side as well with several field trips, including a fishy derby and a Boy Scout retreat where the cadets participate in team building exercises such as canoeing, archery, ziplining and swimming. The kids also have a night of swimming at Principia, with two members of the college’s swim team there to serve as lifeguards.
The camp then concludes with the formal graduation ceremony on Saturday.
“Words can’t explain it,” Dye said. “It’s even more emotional because now it’s the first time they’ve seen their loved ones — parent, guardian, teacher who recommended them, etc. The smile on their faces ... the staff, the kids, the family, everyone is on Cloud 9 at that graduation. We’ve had some of the most uncooperative kids hugging us and saying they want to come back next year.”
A collaborative effort
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s police assists with the camp and the university itself donates the recreation center for half a day to where the campers can bowl, play foosball, play video games, etc. — free of charge. SIUE police also barbecue for the campers.
Police departments from Shiloh, O’Fallon, Swansea, East St. Louis and Edwardsville also send officers to help.
“SIUE the university and their police are a huge help,” Dye said. “Every officer involved with this are just as passionate about it as I am. They love helping the kids and building the relationships. A lot of officers will actually stay in contact with these kids and follow up with them.”
Medical staff from Memorial Hospital are present as well. Part of the application requires including any medical conditions a cadet experiences.
“So if a kid in physical training rolls his or her ankle or if a kid has asthma ... the staff has it documented on when they’ll their need medication. From a medical standpoint, we have all of that covered. They have medical golf carts to get around in if one of the cadets gets sick,” Dye said.
Additionally, Dye brings in guest speakers each year, a distinguished list that’s included Illinois state Sen. Chris Belt, Judge (Ret.) Annette Eckert, Judge Milton Wharton, St. Clair County Circuit Clerk Kahalah Clay, former Gold Medal Olympian Jackie Joyner-Kersee and former NFL players Dana Howard and Bryan Cox. Dye noted each had different presentations but that all their messages were extremely powerful.
“They all emphasized the same things, the values we stress to them during that week-long residency program on how to handle adversity, how to handle challenges, to have self-confidence, to have self pride and that they can be anything they want to be in life,” Dye said. “They stress those core values we stress to the during the week, such as good choices and decision making.”
This is one of four youth police camps in the state. There’s also one in Carbondale, one in Springfield and one in the Chicagoland area. The one Dye oversees was the pilot program and has been in existence the longest. All four are through the state police.
The youth camp and Teen Court
Consider Eckert a huge camp advocate. Eckert is the Director of St. Clair County Teen Court, which is a restorative justice program for first- or second-time teen offenders under the age of 18 who have committed a non-violent offense.
Cases first are referred to Teen Court by the St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s office.
Then, offenders who accept responsibility and agree to Teen Court have a hearing with other high school-aged students serving as peer jurors. Eckert explained the peer jurors determine what remedies for the young person to complete based on the rules of restorative justice. Those rules are 1.) How to hold the teen accountable for their act; 2.) How to repair the harm to all the victims; and 3.) How to make the teen become a more productive person.
Eckert said Dye told her about the camp re-opening after the pandemic. In turn, under Eckert’s watch, Teen Court — in existence since 2014 — has implemented the camp as one of the remedies for youth who go through the program.
“Sgt. Dye is a tireless spokesperson for the camp and heartfelt advocate for youth,” Eckert said. “I think people in the state of Illinois are blessed to have something like this, an opportunity for our teens statewide, both boys and girls, to participate in this camp. My perception of the youth camp ... after being there, having lunch with kids, talking with them and speaking to them about second chances, is that the Youth Camp is one of those life changing experiences for a young person that could really make a difference. It has all the components: Team building, meeting new people, learning new skills, physical training ... everything.
“It’s the opportunity to learn about so many things that are going to help them as a teen and as an adult.”
Teen Court sent two youth there in 2022 with both graduating from the camp, with a third unable to attend due to a conflict with summer school. At least one more is scheduled to attend in July.
“It’s a wonderful resource for our peer jurors to have as a remedy for a teen that comes before them that they feel it’s appropriate for,” she said. “A week of all these experiences, and — learning about peer pressure, drugs and alcohol, gun violence ... and the physical training they do will help them the rest of their lives. This entire week is there for the teen to absorb.”
Eckert also enjoyed speaking to the cadets last summer, focusing on second chances and making the most of those.
“I talked about Teen Court and how we give young people a second chance after making a mistake and then turning something around and making a negative a positive. I don’t know anybody who hasn’t made mistakes. I stressed to them that turning a negative into a positive and having a second chance is very important,” she said.
‘A really good experience’
To any youth who will listen, Hardin — who has a bachelor’s degree in mass communication/art& design from SIUE and is pursuing her master’s in marketing communications — highly recommends attending the camp. She has been back herself, serving as the keynote speaker at graduation in 2016 and then in 2022 to speak at one of the camp sessions.
“I think it would be a good thing for them just so they can see how, if they’re interested in ROTC or going into the military, that would be a teaser, for lack of a better phrase, to see how interested they’d be in that type of career,” she said. “If that’s not a career choice you’re interested in, then the camp would be great just for building those relationships with peers you don’t know, developing social skills and helping foster relationships, teamwork and team building skills. I think it’s a really good experience.”
To that end, Keith Padgett, a social studies teacher at Belleville East, has fully bought into the camp has started steering kids Dye’s way.
“The kids rave about the camp,” said Padgett, a former high school teammate of Dye’s. “I think it just provides them with lots of challenges that they overcome during the week. That builds a lot of confidence. I’ve noticed a huge boost in their confidence after they go through the camp that they can accomplish things. The camp can teach that to as many kids each year, which is a huge advantage to the kids and to all of us.”
Padgett singles out Dye for his dedication to the camp.
“Buddy always takes the kids with open arms and wants to help as many kids as he can,” Padgett said “So I wanted to send some good candidates in his direction. I noticed it more when my kids got older and seeing their friends who could benefit from spending some time with Buddy.”
Added Padgett, “I think the other positive is the kids get to see lots of positive role models at the camp. These are people who are having successful careers and lives and are choosing to do the camp with their time — that speaks volume. You can talk to kid until you’re blue in the face, but when you see the example play out in front of you, that makes a big difference too.”
Camp details
When: Sunday, July 16, through Saturday, July 22
Where: Principia College in Elsah, Illinois
Cost: $20
How to apply: Call Illinois State Police Sgt. Calvin “Buddy” Dye Jr. at 217-685-4752 or email him at Calvin.Dye@illinois.gov. People can also visit www.facebook.com/IllinoisStatePoliceDistrict11 to apply.
Application deadline: Thursday, June 15
Who can apply: Boys and girls ages 13-17
