The CAMP (College Assistance Migrant Program) Records
Collection
Identifier: SEUA-00005
This collection consists primarily of the correspondence of CAMP staff, reports and other administrative records, financial statements, and photographs.
Use of these materials requires an appointment. Contact archives@stedwards.edu
Munday Library provides online access to portions of this collection here:
https://sites.google.com/stedwards.edu/munday-library-archives-camp/home
No materials belonging to the St. Edward’s University Archives and Special Collections may be published or exhibited, in whole or in part, without written permission of the Director of the Library. Specific acknowledgement of the Munday Library Archives and Special Collections must appear in the printed publication or display. The library requests notification of publication or display and a complimentary copy of the published work. Photocopies or scans made of archival materials are intended for private research and permission to create these reproductions should not be taken as permission to publish. All responsibility for possible infringement of copyright law as a result of reproduction and use of these materials is assumed by the applicant. The researcher assumes full responsibility for complying with laws of libel and literary property rights which may be involved in their use. The Munday Library, at its discretion, may deny duplication of materials known to be covered by copyright that it does not own. Requests for permission to publish should be sent to archives@stedwards.edu
In 1972 the Department of Education provided grant monies for the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) to four schools: St. Edward’s University, Pan American University (Edinburg, Texas), Adams State College (Alamosa, Colorado), and San Diego State University. The CAMP goals at each institution were similar: to provide migrant youths with an opportunity to enter the formal, postsecondary education system and to offer the support that would enable them to compete with traditional students in that system for their first year of college. At St. Edward’s University, Dr. Gene Binder is appointed as CAMP Director and 100 students are enrolled. Of the original four schools, St. Edward’s is the only program to have continued uninterrupted to the present day.
Donors and endowments have always stepped in to provide the necessary financial support to sustain the program during periods of financial hardship, and the university allocates a sizable amount of its budget to maintain CAMP. It is commitments like these that have allowed SEU’s program to continue when others folded.
In 1997, Enriqueta Cortez (class of 1988), became the first CAMP graduate to receive the Distinguished Alumni Award from St. Edward’s University. In 2001, Geronimo M. Rodriguez, Jr. (class of 1990) was the first CAMP graduate to be awarded the Alumni Achievement Award.
In 2004, St. Edward’s University pledged that no CAMP student will leave the university for financial reasons. As long as CAMP students maintain a 2.0 GPA or better, they receive tuition for up to four additional years (beyond the first, which is federally funded). The SEU program received the Texas High Education Star Award for closing the gaps in students participation, student success, and academic excellence and research.
The program received the 2006 Texas Aguila Award in Education, which is given to those who provide confidence and encouragement to the Hispanic Community.
In 2007 St. Edward’s collaborated with the AmeriCorps and Harvest of Hope to provide support through migrants-helping-migrants succeed.
Since its inception, over 3,000 students have received scholarships through CAMP at St. Edward’s University.
50 Linear Feet
English
A collection of records from the College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) at St. Edward's University, the longest-running CAMP program in the United States. The materials primarily focus on the early days of the program and its liasons with various high school feeder programs.
Arranged in 5 Series: I. Administrative; II. Affiliated Migrant Programs; III. Alumni; IV. Media V. Ephemera. This arrangement scheme was imposed during processing.
These materials were created and maintained in the CAMP offices during the normal course of business. Bulk transfers of materials to the archives have occurred with some consistency since approximately the 1990s.
The majority of the items in the collection at the time of processing were retained. Duplicates were discarded or kept for display purposes. Items related to other collections were separated and places in those collections.
Further accruals are expected.
The collection was likely first processed in the 1980s. In the Summer of 2021 intern Martha Gandara processed additional materials into the collection and worked to separate CAMP materials from those of related programs. In the Summer of 2022, Archivist and Special Collections Librarian Travis Williams did a fresh processing pass at the entire collection - including the refoldering of 90% of the materials.
Part of the University Archives Repository