Flight – LOTUS Chicago

Since 2023, Camp Flight has encouraged young people to discover their passions through a summer experience that blends learning, play, and real-world exposure. Serving current 2nd through 8th graders, Camp Flight operates in Bronzeville, Maywood, Evanston, Albany Park, and North Park. Campers experience a “flight” of different industries and disciplines through fun, engaging activities that go beyond typical camp offerings. Programming runs daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and includes a field trip each week. Each week features a different primary module such as science projects, team rowing, sailing, theater, dance, aviation, e-gaming, robotics, and more, alongside weekly gardening and financial empowerment focused on entrepreneurship, investing, and understanding how money moves.

Health, safety, and belonging are central to everything we do. Camp Flight is air-quality informed and adjusts activities as needed. We are allergy-aware, asthma-aware, and experienced in supporting campers with diabetes and other medical conditions through clear care plans and trained staff. With high instructor-to-camper ratios, daily mindfulness, and a strong anti-bullying culture, campers are seen, supported, and engaged. Camp Flight is academically leaning yet joyful, offering experiential learning that helps young people connect who they are today to who they can become.

Science: STEAM Lab

We kick off Camp Flight with our very own STEAM LAB, where science, technology, engineering, art, and math collide in the most hands-on, mind-expanding way possible. This is not about worksheets and formulas—this is about creating, building, experimenting, and making connections between what we learn and how we live. LOTUS has been crafting STEAM experiences that hit different, and this summer, we are going bigger than ever.

Financial Empowerment: So You Want To Be A Boss?

This is Shark Tank, but for real life! Attorney Joan Clay and The Village Legal and Community Project (TVLCP) are coming through to break down the numbers game—how money moves, how to make it work for you, and how to pitch like a boss. This session is for future entrepreneurs, creatives, and anyone who plans to control their own financial destiny. If you do not know your numbers, you are just guessing.

Culinary and Gardening

We are turning the lab into a kitchen, because knowing how to grow food is only half the journey—knowing how to prepare and transform it is the next level. 5918 Catering is showing us how to take the fresh ingredients and turn them into real, delicious meals. Campers will get hands-on experience cutting, preparing, and cooking, learning that food is both science and culture on a plate.

Filmmaking

From concept to creation, we are diving into the world of storytelling through film with none other than Coquie Hughes, an independent film powerhouse. Campers will write, direct, and produce short film projects while learning how to shape narratives that represent who we are and where we come from.

Aviation or Sailing

True Star is running a high-energy, creative media workshop, where campers will produce content that amplifies their voices. Film, photography, journalism—this is the place where media becomes our tool for storytelling.

Science Fair! or Team Rowing

Natasha Ferguson commands our Forensics Lab that is built for the curious minds who love a good mystery. We are stepping into the role of detectives, analyzing evidence, and cracking cases using real-life forensic science techniques.

eGaming and Robotics with I Play Games

Gaming is more than a hobby—it is a multibillion-dollar industry, and we are getting in on the action. Kevin Fair is breaking down how gaming turns into business, how strategy and problem-solving apply to real life, and, of course, we will be playing some of the best competitive games out.

Robotics

At Camp Flight, our Robotics Module is more than just wires and wheels — it’s where creativity meets critical thinking, and where students become builders, coders, and collaborators.

Our Robotics Module is facilitated by trained mentors with a passion for youth development and STEAM education. Because when young people build machines, they build belief in their ability to change the world.

Golf w/ First Tee - Greater Chicago

Golf is strategy, patience, and finesse—and First Tee (Coach is Shavers) – Greater Chicago is here to make sure our campers know how to swing with skill and confidence. This is more than a game; it is about access, networking, and playing (having fun) in spaces where big moves are made.

*Weekly lineup subject to change.
Early enroll for Summer 26 TODAY!

"Camp Flight Is Better Than All Camps"

“My son said, ‘Camp Flight is better than all camps.’ And we send him to some serious camps, or so we thought. The structure is so accommodating and the content is beyond stellar. Academics and outdoor summer fun. There are absolutely no other camps like this in the city for sure. And in the heart of Bronzeville.”