Still The One
It is said that the most sincere form of flattery is imitation. And so many try to do what we do. But none have achieved the levels of competency, integrity, and skill that are the hallmarks of our organization...Student Camp & Trip Advisors.
There is good reason for our claim. Beverly Shiffman, president of SCATA, founded this business in 1970, over 35 years ago. She was the first to understand that families needed help finding appropriate summer camps and trips for their children. This understanding was based upon her frustration and missteps in placing her own young daughters in programs.
One by one by one, she built relationships.
She built relationships with owners and program directors. The choices were few in comparison to today's huge array, but Beverly developed in-depth knowledge of every program that she represented. Camp and trip directors welcomed her eagerly because of her desire to understand their programs and philosophies. Traveling alone, she went to see camps while they were operating in the summer months. She became a trusted confidante and advisor to developing programs as well as consultant to already existing ones. The strong, unbreakable ties that remain in place to this day.
At the same time, Beverly built relationships with families. She knew the questions to ask to ensure wonderful fits between children and recommended camps. Working out of her home, her families grew. One family at a time, she built a reputation. Her love of children and desire to provide the service that was so needed blended to establish the same level of trust and reliance that she had established with the directors.
This winning combination clicked. After several years of going it alone, Beverly hired a staff of consultants. The concept was well accepted in the Boston area and soon the demand for her service extended well beyond New England. Branch offices were established all over the US and in Canada.
One of the little girls who was the inspiration for this business, Diane Borodkin, Beverly's daughter, joined her mother over 20 years ago and is now the Vice President of SCATA working side by side with her mother and adding her special vitality and deep knowledge of programs to the mix.
Travel in the summer changed. From one woman alone, there are now teams of SCATA representatives covering the globe each summer. Since each branch associate is carefully chosen to reflect Beverly's high standards, the SCATA teams are always welcomed and respected.
The knowledge that we gather as an organization serves you well. SCATA representatives meet every new director. They know about any physical change to a campus; they advise owners about trends. They know the kinds of activities that families want. Because of the special relationships established by Beverly so many years ago, SCATA reps are privy to all this information.
At the start of every new recruiting season, SCATA associates meet in the home area, Boston.
At our Annual Meeting, we discuss every program in our ever-expanding portfolio. Every change is duly noted. Feedback from families is shared and the entire organization hears both the good and bad reports. Directors are contacted and depend on our feedback to adjust, change and tweak their programs. Most important, the information is shared and available to you, our families.
What began as an idea, with one woman, a few programs and a handful of families has grown into a corporation, with 11 branch offices that extend from Boston to San Francisco, Atlanta, Chicago, Fairfield, North to Montreal, South to Brazil and now to Korea.
Our portfolio, which contained three or four willing programs now holds over 650 programs, located in villages, towns, cities, on school campuses and in remote exotic regions world over.
Small, traditional summer camps have been joined by specialty camps of every type from teen programs to sports to arts to science to computers and more.
Cross country teen travel has been joined by challenging wilderness trips, college campus learning programs, world travel, community service projects, internship programs, sailing and SCUBA programs, environmental programs, semester programs.
And we know about every one. Every SCATA rep has learned from the master. Companies come on the scene all the time. They try to learn in a short period of time what it has taken almost 35 years to learn.
But some things can't be learned. Directors know that. When SCATA sends a referral to them, they know that this student is well suited for the kind of program that they run. They know that SCATA makes perfect matches. We're often imitated, but never duplicated.
After all these years, We're still having fun and we're Still The One!
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