Get ready to lace up your hiking boots and grab your sleeping bags, because Prince George's County’s favorite outdoor education playground is getting a massive glow-up!
The William S. Schmidt Outdoor Education Center – affectionately known by generations of students as Camp Schmidt – is currently undergoing a spectacular $55 million modernization project. Located on 450 beautiful, wooded acres in Brandywine, this major overhaul is transforming the decades-old campus into a state-of-the-art, highly sustainable, nature-based wonderland.
“Watching the construction transform our campus is exciting. It takes the natural beauty of the Schmidt Center and blends it with modern, accessible facilities,” says James Roberson, Schmidt Center Supervisor. “This new space will create opportunities for students to engage with nature, enhancing their overall campus experience and demonstrating a true investment in their well-being and education.”
For more than 50 years, Camp Schmidt’s main mission has been providing an unforgettable overnight outdoor educational experience for fifth graders. It’s a rite of passage where kids get to trade screens for streams!
While visiting, students dive into incredible hands-on activities, including:
But it’s not just for fifth graders! The Center also hosts amazing summer learning opportunities for teachers and team-building retreats for school district staff.
Six new sleeping cabins
The campus is growing by leaps and bounds – demolishing outdated structures and adding up to 25,000 square feet of brand-new, eco-friendly buildings. Here is what campers can look forward to:
Sleeping cabin interior
A brand-new residential village is being built featuring modern student sleeping cabins, a central camp hub, and an open-air pavilion classroom.
Dining Hall exterior
No more long treks through the woods! The new full-service dining hall has a capacity to comforably seat up to 275 students and staff, and also includes additional classroom space. Best of all, it’s conveniently located near both residential villages, eliminating the old one-mile walk students used to have to take just to grab lunch at the old cafeteria in the Orme Building.
Fire circle and pavillion
The William S. Schmidt Center is a sustainable-status Maryland Green School, and this redesign is taking eco-friendliness to the next level. In line with PGCPS climate action goals, the campus will feature:
The hard-working construction teams (including partners like Quinn Evans Architects and Oak Contracting) are working diligently to bring this dream to life.
The project is actively under construction and targeting a grand opening this fall!
