NEPA's Summer in the City

NEPA's Summer in the City is pleased to announce the full launch of our Youth Community Development Program in conjunction with our 2026 Partners: Geisinger's Janet Weis Children's Hospital, The Lands at Hillside Farms, The Food Dignity Movement, Gifts for Teens, and The Cancer Wellness Center of NEPA.

This program serves as the gateway to NEPA's Summer in the City. Together, we’ve designed an immersive summer experience with local high schools and universities that connect the next generation of changemakers to people, places, and organizations across the NEPA region while making regional change.

Please find all the information for Summer 2026 below. Please note that all applications are due by Sunday, March 1st, by midnight.

What is the Community Development Program?

The "CDP" is new summer-long experience for high school students who want to understand how communities work and help actively shape them as leaders.

We've spent two years creating an experiential curriculum that blends workshops across NEPA, career-prep, and hands-on service work, finishing with a capstone Community Development Project, a real regional initiative centered around their interests, built with local non-profits' leadership.

The program is split into five distinct phases:

1. Community Foundations

2. Project Discovery & Design

3. Community Toolkit Development

4. Project Execution & Delivery

5. Reflection & Real-World Impact

Graduates don’t just understand community development. They walk away with a region-wide project to prove they've actually done it. Many students return next summer(s) to serve on our senior committee in larger leadership positions.

So is it a camp, a class, or an internship?

Not exactly any of those — it's a mix of all three and more! From May through August, students partake in a blend of in-person sessions occurring roughly once per week. A tentative calendar can be found here: 2026 Program Calendar.

Sessions mostly run from morning to early afternoon at sites around Luzerne County. Locations include everywhere from Wilkes-Barre City and the Luzerne County Courthouse to Geisinger Health Care and PNC Field. There, community leaders and professionals lead workshops that help students design, develop, and deliver their Community Impact Projects.

For example, at an early session, students enjoy having a breakfast picnic in Kirby Park with local officials who discuss Wilkes-Barre's current development. After, they'll break into a scavenger hunt where they race to explore small businesses and historic city locations. Then, they'll meet with the Chamber of Commerce, which will talk about the importance of events in community-building, before witnessing firsthand during free time at the Fine Arts Fiesta on the Square. The day finishes with an Event Planning 101 Class with festival organizers who help them plan their first all-group "tutorial" event that they host together the following week.

Sessions focus on a central skill and related real-world skills. During the Design Your Future students design their own resumes and engage in interview prep. During the Mission & Media session, students learn how to write a press release and perform a SWOT analysis on their non-profits like real-world consultants.

Later in the summer, focus turns to the students' projects. Beyond sessions, the students meet weekly in small teams to "consult" with their assigned nonprofit’s leadership team to design their project. Everything culminates in a final project presentation in front of NEPA leaders at our Celebration of Summer.

Am I able to apply?

The program is open to rising high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors from any school, so if you're currently in Grade 9, 10, or 11: yes, you can! Students' schools are not considered in the application process. Instead, we focus on each student's potential and desire to get involved in NEPA.

Note: accepted applicants must pay a $100 program fee for participation. Tuition covers all programming, meals, materials, and shirts for the program.

Ok, I'm in! How do I apply?

The application process is split into two parts: (1) an online application and (2) an in-person interview in March. Space is limited, so applications are competitive.

To start, fill out the online application (it's just this form). Put effort into it, but don't overthink it. We just want to get to know you! Then, we'll invite the top applicants for a sit-down interview on the evening of Thursday, March 12th at Wyoming Seminary. 

Important Dates to Remember

Monday, January 12 - Student Applications Open & Sent to Schools

Sunday, March 1 - Student Applications Due

Thursday, March 12 - Evening Interviews at Wyoming Seminary 

Monday, March 23 - Application Decisions Released

Friday, April 10 - Confirmation & Program Fee Due

Tuesday, April 21 - Evening Program Orientation

If you have any questions about the program or application process, please contact Paul Stevenson (Director of Programming) at (570) 507-0040 or psteven6@nd.edu. We look forward to seeing your application!

As previously stated, Summer in the City's Community Development Program is a fun-loving program that requires student attendance at our summer sessions.

While we understand every student can not come to every session, we ask students not miss more than three program dates unless there are extenuating circumstances (which we can discuss if needed) so they can complete the program. The full list of dates/times for the program can be found here: 2026 Tentative Calendar

By signing below, you agree that, if accepted to the program, you will attend every session you are able and pay the $100 tuition fee (if the fee prevents an economic barrier email psteven6@nd.edu to discuss a scholarship opportunity.)