Volunteer, Summer, and Other Opportunities
There are lots of ways to learn and grow outside of the classroom!Local groups, regional programs, businesses, and even national camps or workshops offer great experiences. Getting involved in these activities can help you explore new interests, meet professionals in different fields, and strengthen your resume for college or jobs.Check out the tabs below to find links and info about these opportunities!
Summer Programs
Summer is a great time to explore!
Mentors4College Summer Programs Webpage Access an up-to-date list of area summer programs on THIS page managed by our partners at Mentors4College which keeps opportunities organized by grade level/age eligibility.
Parkway Summer College Admissions Program (at Maryville University) - This program is an opportunity to prepare yourself for the college application process and prepare for the ACT/SAT. To register, students should complete this application form by May 1st, 2026.
Questions? Please contact Tim Burkard, tburkhard@parkwayschools.net
Summer Programs By Location
You can also use the tabs below to check out summer programs organized by location
St Louis Area Programs
BESt Pharmacy Summer Institute
A.C.E.S. (Anatomy Centered Education and Science) Program at Logan University
Mercy Teen Hospital Volunteer Program
SIU Edwardsville Engineering Summer Camp
St. Louis University Health Care Exploration Camp
University of Missouri-St Louis "Bridge to College" Program Summer Academy
Missouri and Illinois Area Programs
- Drury University's "Leadership Academy" (Springfield, MO)
- Eastern Illinois University's "English Studies Summer Camp" (Charleston, IL)
- Missouri Cadet Patrol Academy (Jefferson City, MO)
- Mizzou's "Mini Medical School" Pre Med Outreach Program (Columbia, MO)
- Mizzou's "Medical Exploration" Pre Med Outreach Program (Online)
- Missouri University of Science & Technology's Summer camps (Rolla, MO)
- Introduction to Engineering
- Explosives Camp
- Robotics
- Superconductive Quantum World
- BioMed IQ
- Nuclear Engineering
- Accelerated Environmental Scientist
- Mining the Mind (psychology)
- Engineering with Biology
- BioSpace Academy
- Mechanical Crash Course (autonomous vehicles)
- Art in the Outdoors
- Earth 2.0
- Discovering Chemistry
- Materials Science
- ESports Boot Campu
- Aerospace
- Southeast Missouri State University's Summer Camps (Cape Girardeau, MO)
- Accounting - Attending this camp makes you eligible for a $2,500 scholarship—just for showing up and learning!
- ESports
- Marching Band Camp
- Public Speaking Camp
Southern Illinois University's "SOAR Accounting Summer Camp" (Carbondale, IL)
Truman State University's "ATSU Summer Healthcare Academy" (Kirksville, MO)
Out of State Programs
University of Alabama's "Communication and Media Preview Camp" (Tuscaloosa, AL)
Boston University's "Summer Pre-College Programs" (Boston, MASS)
Broadreach's "Epic Trips for High School Students" (Various Locations)
Calvin College (Grand Rapids, MI) - Entrada Scholars Program for academically talented ethnic minority youth https://calvin.edu/offices-services/college-access-programs/programs/entrada/index.html
University of Chicago (Chicago, IL) - http://summer.uchicago.edu/highschool/programs
Emory University (Atlanta, GA) - http://precollege.emory.edu/
George Washington University (Washington, D.C.) - http://precollege.gwu.edu/
Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.) – http://scs.georgetown.edu/departments/21/summer-programs-for-high-school-students
Johns Hopkins University (virtual) - Global Health and Medicine summer program https://glohea.org/
K-State University - School of Music, Theatre, and Dance summer camps https://www.k-state.edu/mtd/events/summer/
Miami University (Oxford, OH) - http://miamioh.edu/admission/high-school/summer-scholars/
University of Mississippi - www.outreach.olemiss.edu/pre_college
Murray State University (Murray, KY) - Commonwealth Honors Academy To attend students must have at least 25 on ACT and 3.5 or higher GPA No cost to students except transportation www.murraystate.edu/cha
National Geographic Student Expediations - ngstudentexpeditions.com
University of Nebraska (Lincoln) - Big Red Summer Academic Camps http://4h.unl.edu/big-red-camps
Northwestern University (Evanston, IL) - National High School Institute - School of Communications offers programs in film & video, speech, theatre arts, and debate www.northwestern.edu/nhsi
Otis College of Art and Design (Los Angeles, CA) - http://www.otis.edu/summer-art
Oxbridge Academic Programs - www.oxbridgeprograms.com
University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA) - https://www.sas.upenn.edu/summer/
University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA) - Engineering Summer Academy esap.seas.upenn.edu
Phillips Academy (Andover, MA) - www.andover.edu/summer
Pratt Institute (Brooklyn, NY) - https://www.pratt.edu/continuing-and-professional-studies/precollege/
Purdue University (West Lafayette, IN) - http://www.purdue.edu/summercamps/
Putney Student Travel - goputney.com
Ringling College of Art and Design (Sarasota, FL) - http://www.ringling.edu/PreCollege
Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA) - http://www.scad.edu/academics/pre-college-summer-programs/scad-summer-seminars
Society of American Military Engineers - STEM camps https://www.same.org/camps/
USC University of Southern California - http://summerprograms.usc.edu/
Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies (CA) - https://spcs.stanford.edu/
Stanford Academic Enrichment Programs (CA) - https://spcs.stanford.edu/programs
Summer Institute for the Gifted (various locations) - http://www.giftedstudy.org/
Tufts University (Medford, MA) - https://universitycollege.tufts.edu/high-school/intensives
US Naval Academy (Annapolis, MD) - http://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Programs/index.php
College of William and Mary (Williamsbrug, VA) - Pre-collegiate Program in Early American History https://www.wm.edu/as/niahd/precol/
Yale Young Global Scholars Program (New Haven, Connecticut) - http://globalscholars.yale.edu/
Enrichment
Students are often looking for experiences which will promote academic and/or personal growth. Here are some examples of opportunities or resources available to find the best fit for your needs:
- Local Medical Path Opportunities
- UMSL Bridge Summer Academy
- UMSL Cigna Saturday Academy
- BESt Healthcare Institute Summer Program
- Xploration Healthcare Summer Program (ages 11-15)
- Healthcare Camp - SoutheastHEALTH (rising 10th-12th)
- Wash U - High School Summer Scholars Program
- Lumiere Education - Research Scholars Program
Volunteering
Although community service hours are not required for graduation, we encourage all students to find a way to engage in their community and serve others.
This list of opportunities is not inclusive, but provides examples of things Parkway students have engaged with in the past.
- St. Louis County Library
- Jewish Community Center
- Friends of Kids with Cancer
- Ready Readers
- Loaves & Fishes
- St. Louis Area Foodbank
- Artists First
- TASK (Team Activities for Special Kids)
- KEEN (Kids Enjoy Exercise Now) St. Louis
- Great Rivers Greenway
- Foster & Adoptive Care Coalition
- Butterfly House
- Humane Society of Missouri
- Missouri House Rabbit Society of St. Louis
- Animal Protective Association
- Zoo ALIVE Teen Volunteer Program
- Zoo Teen Summer Program
- The Moog Center for Deaf Education - summer volunteers needed (contact lfales@moogcenter.org)
- Local Medical Path Opportunities
- United Way
- Volunteen Nation
- Volunteer Match
Note sure where you would like to volunteer?
Then check out the website VolunteerMatch.
Teens can input their zip code and areas of service they are interested in pursuing. Results will give the student the organization's webpage, address, description, last update date, what skills they are looking for in a volunteer, etc. to make it easy to reach out any opportunities.
6th Grade Camp
All applications should be submitted by September 19th, 2025 to be considered for fall camp dates; January 16th, 2026 to be considered for Spring dates.
Cabin leaders are mentors for 6th grade students at Parkway's Outdoor School. To be considered for a cabin leader, students must be in 10th, 11th, or 12th grade, and must complete the below application. Cabin Leaders who are enrolled in the A+ Scholarship Program will earn all 50 of their tutoring hours by leading one full outdoor camp session.
For more information about the 6th grade camp program, please visit Parkway's district website for Outdoor School.
