Headwaters Summer Science Camps
Headwaters Science Institute (programs at Truckee Springs, Serene Lakes, North Lake Tahoe, Webber Lake, Tilden Regional Park, Riverside Elementary School & Wildcat Regional Park), PO Box 913, Soda Springs, CA 95728
About
Headwaters Summer Science Camps offers hands-on outdoor science camps where kids take part in hiking, water exploration, and guided nature investigation. Campers explore plants, wildlife, insects, soil, and water, including investigating the mountain ecosystem with a focus on plants, animals, weather, and geology. Some camps include exploring local biodiversity and the region’s water systems, animals, and insects through field-based investigation, as well as opportunities to design and carry out real environmental research projects and develop their findings.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Week-long outdoor science day camps, a 4-day/3-night Girls Summer Science Research Camp, and a 3-day/2-night Introduction to Research Overnight Science Camp
Headwaters Summer Science Camps is run by Headwaters Science Institute, a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. The program includes day camps in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe and overnight field camps at Webber Lake, along with additional day camps in the East Bay Area. The Girls Summer Science Research Camp is an overnight camp where campers work alongside professional female scientists to design and carry out real environmental research projects, and the Introduction to Research Overnight Science Camp introduces middle and high school students to the scientific research process in an outdoor setting. A Counselor-in-Training Program is available for ages 13–15 at several day camps, and WCCUSD Summer Science Camp is for WCCUSD students only.
The leadership and staff team includes Bay Area Youth Program Coordinator Matt Ellis-Ramírez, who is an interdisciplinary ecologist focused on science communication, education, and design, an Aspen Institute Future Climate Leader award recipient, a former youth climate advisor to the Mayor of Miami-Dade County, and a published poet who studied coral viruses as an NSF Microbiomes Fellow at UC Berkeley, led field and professional development programs with Florida International University’s Coastal Everglades REU, and co-created and taught a high school course on sea level rise that blends art and science to explore climate change. Program Manager Baylee Goodwin earned a degree in Zoology from Oregon State University and has spent six years working in environmental education and conservation across eight states. Senior Marketing, Communications, and Development Manager Jenn Cotton holds a B.S. in Event Management from the University of Central Florida, has over 15 years of experience in education and science, has taught hands-on marine science through shark research and field investigations, led science education initiatives for over 300 secondary educators in a Florida school district, served on the board of the Florida State Science and Engineering Fair, launched an educational program for OCEARCH’s Global Shark Tracker, and most recently worked as a Risk Manager at NASA. Bay Area School Program Manager Mary Kathryne Schumaker has a Bachelor of Science in Coastal Environmental Science from Louisiana State University and A&M College with a minor in Mandarin Chinese and Disaster Science & Management, and was previously the Watershed Programs Coordinator for the Tennessee-based water quality nonprofit WaterWays. Communications Director and Research Program Manager Megan Joyce graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in Environmental and Sustainability Sciences and from Syracuse University with an MPA in Environmental Policy. Program and Fundraising Assistant (Bay Area) Monique Allen graduated from Vassar College with a double major in Biology and Science, Technology, and Society (STS) and a minor in Education, and previously worked as a kayak and bike guide in Washington State’s San Juan Islands. Youth Programs and Research Experience Manager Brea Gillespie has a PhD from the University of California, Davis, and San Diego State University and an undergraduate degree from Spelman College, and Program Coordinator of the Bay Area is Chase Oishi.
One camper from the Girls Summer Science Camp, Ashley Alarcon, stated that she loved how they learned and improved on science skills while also having fun, and that she had the opportunity to interact with females from all over California who love science, and that the camp opened her eyes to science fields and helped her realize that science can play a big role in selecting her career. An overnight camp participant thanked the program for contributing to a camp that supports their interests while learning the importance of the natural sciences and said they had a lot of fun.
Last updated August 8, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Week-long outdoor science day camps, a 4-day/3-night Girls Summer Science Research Camp, and a 3-day/2-night Introduction to Research Overnight Science Camp
Headwaters Summer Science Camps is run by Headwaters Science Institute, a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. The program includes day camps in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe and overnight field camps at Webber Lake, along with additional day camps in the East Bay Area. The Girls Summer Science Research Camp is an overnight camp where campers work alongside professional female scientists to design and carry out real environmental research projects, and the Introduction to Research Overnight Science Camp introduces middle and high school students to the scientific research process in an outdoor setting. A Counselor-in-Training Program is available for ages 13–15 at several day camps, and WCCUSD Summer Science Camp is for WCCUSD students only.
The leadership and staff team includes Bay Area Youth Program Coordinator Matt Ellis-Ramírez, who is an interdisciplinary ecologist focused on science communication, education, and design, an Aspen Institute Future Climate Leader award recipient, a former youth climate advisor to the Mayor of Miami-Dade County, and a published poet who studied coral viruses as an NSF Microbiomes Fellow at UC Berkeley, led field and professional development programs with Florida International University’s Coastal Everglades REU, and co-created and taught a high school course on sea level rise that blends art and science to explore climate change. Program Manager Baylee Goodwin earned a degree in Zoology from Oregon State University and has spent six years working in environmental education and conservation across eight states. Senior Marketing, Communications, and Development Manager Jenn Cotton holds a B.S. in Event Management from the University of Central Florida, has over 15 years of experience in education and science, has taught hands-on marine science through shark research and field investigations, led science education initiatives for over 300 secondary educators in a Florida school district, served on the board of the Florida State Science and Engineering Fair, launched an educational program for OCEARCH’s Global Shark Tracker, and most recently worked as a Risk Manager at NASA. Bay Area School Program Manager Mary Kathryne Schumaker has a Bachelor of Science in Coastal Environmental Science from Louisiana State University and A&M College with a minor in Mandarin Chinese and Disaster Science & Management, and was previously the Watershed Programs Coordinator for the Tennessee-based water quality nonprofit WaterWays. Communications Director and Research Program Manager Megan Joyce graduated from Cornell University with a B.S. in Environmental and Sustainability Sciences and from Syracuse University with an MPA in Environmental Policy. Program and Fundraising Assistant (Bay Area) Monique Allen graduated from Vassar College with a double major in Biology and Science, Technology, and Society (STS) and a minor in Education, and previously worked as a kayak and bike guide in Washington State’s San Juan Islands. Youth Programs and Research Experience Manager Brea Gillespie has a PhD from the University of California, Davis, and San Diego State University and an undergraduate degree from Spelman College, and Program Coordinator of the Bay Area is Chase Oishi.
One camper from the Girls Summer Science Camp, Ashley Alarcon, stated that she loved how they learned and improved on science skills while also having fun, and that she had the opportunity to interact with females from all over California who love science, and that the camp opened her eyes to science fields and helped her realize that science can play a big role in selecting her career. An overnight camp participant thanked the program for contributing to a camp that supports their interests while learning the importance of the natural sciences and said they had a lot of fun.
Last updated August 8, 2026.
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