Camp 1839 registration closes Friday at Illinois School for the Deaf
Families had until Friday to enroll deaf and hard-of-hearing children in Camp 1839, a June 17-21 stay-on-campus program at ISD built around ASL, Deaf culture and friendships.
Families of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in Morgan County had until Friday, May 15, to sign up for Camp 1839 at the Illinois School for the Deaf, a June 17-21 program for students entering fourth through eighth grade in the fall. The weeklong camp gave children a chance to live in the school’s dorms, experience daily life at ISD and meet peers who share similar communication needs.
The camp carried a $75 registration fee, and the UIC Division of Specialized Care for Children said that fee could be waived if a child later became a full-time ISD student. Camp activities were built around American Sign Language, Deaf culture, STEAM, sports, gaming and a water-park outing, making the experience more than a simple summer recreation program. For parents looking for a setting where a child could build confidence and social connections, the camp offered a structured preview of the school environment.
ISD, on its 50-acre campus in Jacksonville at 125 S. Webster Avenue, serves students ages 3 to 22 who are deaf or hard of hearing. The school says it provides day programming for students who live within 25 miles of Jacksonville and residential services for students who live farther away. It also describes itself as a bilingual ASL-English environment with academic, career, support, sports and extracurricular programs alongside family and educational services.
The school’s history gives Camp 1839 added local weight. ISD was founded in 1839, the same year it was authorized by the Illinois legislature, and the school says it is the oldest state-owned building still used for its original purpose. In fiscal 2023, the school provided educational instruction to 209 students on a continual basis, including 154 on campus and 55 in Birth to Three.
Camp 1839 has drawn families before. Advisory-council notes from 2024 said 34 campers took part, with activities including an egg drop, micro bits, Sphero minis, tie-dye bandanas, Dash, Cubetto, fishing, volleyball, cornhole, art and an outing to Knights Action Park. That mix of hands-on learning and social time showed why the camp matters in Jacksonville: it gives deaf and hard-of-hearing children a summer setting built around their language, their peers and the next steps in their education.
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