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The Brandwein Skill-A-Thon on Training & Leading Your Best Camp Team Ever
In-Depth Learning & Practicing of Outstanding & Original Techniques for Mission-Focused Success
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This is a special opportunity for your career and your camp! We usually learn from Michael in standing-room-only giant rooms with hundreds of people. This fun, exciting, “learning by doing” program is like going to a positive, supportive, “learning camp” with Michael! It’s a small group, “deep-dive” learning experience with hands-on practice in a unique, energetic, creative experience packed with immediately useable skills.
The coolest thing: The highly-detailed design of the Skill-A-Thon (including how you’re greeted, the materials and methods we use to learn and practice together, and even meals!) is a model of what you’ll be learning, so you’ll actually see how these powerful techniques work and be able to take it all back to your camp with confidence!
Learning Goals
The Brandwein Skill-A-Thon experience is packed with specific, practical, and original skills you can’t get anywhere else that you will learn, practice, and take home, including tools on:
Staff Training That is Superb Teaching, Not Talking.
- Save a ton of time: During the Skill-A-Thon you’ll plan essential parts of your 2026 training, plugging in tested, highest-quality activities and applying the biggest secrets to successful scheduling
- How to grab attention with this generation in a social media world
- Increase professionalism and support staff in doing this real job, even if it’s one of their first
- Motivate all levels of staff and build stronger teamwork
- Boost interesting and exciting participation, and make sure people learn the practical skills that they will really use and are essential for camp success
- Saving a ton of time by planning essential parts of your training right now, during the Skill-A-Thon
Real Character and Youth Development. Every Hour, Every Day, Every Camper.
- How to make sure your camp is building confidence, kindness, respect, responsibility, creativity, cooperation, and much more
- Recruit & retain campers by distinguishing your camp from others in the ways you communicate your mission and its value, making your camp the place parents want to send their kids
- The step-by-step techniques to use at every camp activity area
- Applying and teaching staff to use Michael’s world famous L.A.S.E.R.B.E.A.M. techniques to identify, teach, model, and design program to build great qualities in young people
- “Playing with a Purpose” with Michael’s original games that teach skills for life
Developing the Leadership Team for Maximum Camp Success.
- Communication and collaboration skills
- Turbo-charging creative program that brings back campers
- Problem-solving, planning, and critical thinking
- Customer service
- Running magnificent meetings by deleting “gripe sessions” and motivating specific actions
- Leading large groups for announcements, special events, and other “up-in-front” moments
The Brandwein Skill-A-Thon takes place on Monday, January 12, 2026 through Wednesday, January 14, 2026.
Monday, January 12th starting time is 2:00pm, and ending time on Wednesday, January 14th at 1:00pm. More Schedule information coming soon!
*Overnight hotel accommodations are including in your registration fee.
Hotel accommodations for Monday, January 12 AND Tuesday, January 13, 2026 (2 nights) are included in your registration, with both double and single room options available. If you already know who you’d like to room with, let us know at registration! If you don’t require a hotel room, please contact us at registration@acail.org for information on alternative pricing.
If you would like to arrive early or stay later, you can add-on additional nights to your registration. Already registered? Email registration@acail.org to get additional nights at a discounted rate.
Stay Over Discount
Come for both Women in Camp Summit and The Brandwein Skill-A-Thon on Training & Leading Your Best Camp Team Ever and you receive $75 off both registrations if registered by November 15, 2025! ($150 savings!)
*Please Note: To receive this discount, participants must register and attend both programs. Following the events a refund will be provided to the participant.
*Optional Registration Add-On's
- Sunday Chicago Tours
- 50% off of Michael Brandwein’s books*
- Additional Hotel Nights at a discounted rate!
Optional Add-On #1: Chicago Tours
Everything Dope Tour
Join Chicago historian Dilla for a guided bus tour of Englewood, a southside neighborhood rich in history, culture, and resilience. Dilla and his talent for storytelling will prove why “everything dope about America comes from Chicago.” After the tour, enjoy a meal on your own in the area before returning to the hotel.
- Sunday, January 11, 2026 from 9:30am - 2:30pm
- Cost: $50
Favorite Chicago Haunts Tour (which includes the Everything Dope Tour above)
Want to continue touring Chicago with some locals? Join Maria, Annie, Katie, or Shauna as they take you around to some of their favorite Chicago haunts. A stop for dinner will be included in the tour cost.
- Sunday, January 11, 2026 from 9:30am - 6:30pm
- Cost: $100
Optional Add-On #2: Discounted Brandwein Books
Purchase your books during registration for a discounted price. Books will be provided onsite at check-in. Limit of one copy per title per registrant. Registrants must attend to receive discounts and books. This offer is only available to registered attendees of the event.
- Training Terrific Staff Vol. 1: $20
- Training Terrific Staff Vol. 2: $24
- Skill of the Day: What Great Leaders of Young People Do & Say: $24
- Growing Great Qualities in Kids: The L.A.S.E.R.B.E.A.M. Technique for Bringing Out the Best in Young People: $10
- Super Staff SuperVision: $10
- Learning Leadership: How to Develop Outstanding Teen Leadership Training Programs at Camp: $12
- The Intentional Camp: Putting More Muscle in the Mission of Character & Youth Development: $25
Optional Add-On #3: Additional Hotel Nights
Come early or stay longer by adding on additional nights to your registration at a discounted rate.
- $94 for a Double
- $139 for a Single
The Brandwein Skill-A-Thon will be held at the: Crowne Plaza Chicago O’Hare Hotel & Conf Ctr, 5440 N River Road, Rosemont, Illinois 60018.
Please Note: You do not need to make any additional reservations. Have hotel questions? Email us at registration@acail.org.
Air Travel
Chicago hosts two major airports, but for the Skill-A-Thon, you want to choose O’Hare International (ORD), which is about 15-20 minutes away from our hotel.
The Crowne Plaza O’Hare Hotel & Conf Ctr offers a free shuttle service to and from O’Hare to the hotel. For more info about the shuttle, including times it runs and its frequency, head to the Crowne Plaza website.
Ride sharing (Lyft, Uber) or taxi services from the airport are also available and super convenient. These services will generally run you $40-$75 dollars each way, depending on traffic and time of day.
You can also arrange for a private car service for approximately $50-$100 each way.
Train or Bus Travel
You can travel to Chicago by Amtrak and CTA trains, and buses! The closest Amtrak station to the Crowne Plaza Chicago O’hare Hotel & Conf Ctr is Chicago Union Station. Most train routes will take you to Chicago Union Station; from there, you’ll have to transfer to the CTA Blueline train and/or a city bus, or grab a ride share.
To learn more about Amtrak train travel for the Skill-A-Thon, head to their website here. Chicago Union Station is approximately 20 miles from the hotel. You can choose to ride share, taxi, or take the CTA Blueline then a bus to the hotel from Union Station.
The CTA Blueline Ventra Card is approximately $5/day or $15/3-day pass. This will get you limitless rides on both city trains and buses. You can learn more about CTA travel here.
* All taxi & ride-share prices are estimates. Times of day and days of the week will alter traffic patterns and cause rates to increase or decrease. ACA Illinois is not liable or responsible for the transportation of attendees.
Travel by Car
You can also drive to the Crowne Plaza Chicago O’Hare Hotel & Conf Ctr, where the Skill-A-Thon is taking place. Parking is $17/day for Skill-A-Thon attendees.
Important Notice About Driving into the Chicagoland Area: Chicago traffic can get very busy at certain parts of the day during rush hour, especially Monday through Friday, or weekends when they host large events. If you are driving through Chicago’s interstate and toll system highways, we recommend that you avoid driving between the hours of 7:30am - 9:30am and 3:30pm-6:30pm, specifically on weekdays.
Pro Tip: Don’t want to pay tolls? Make sure to hit “avoid tolls” on your directions app to avoid the tolls. If you do end up driving on the tollway and do not have an IPass, remember to pay your tolls online within 14 days or you will receive a costly ticket!
Michael Brandwein is one of the most famous names in camp. He is an internationally acclaimed and award-winning staff and Leadership Team trainer who has presented in all 50 states, on 6 continents, and served on the national board of the American Camp Association. He is the number one bestselling author of staff training and leadership books in the camp field, including Training Terrific Staff (Vols. 1 & 2), Skill of the Day: What Great Leaders of Young People Do & Say, Learning Leadership (CIT/LIT), Super Staff SuperVision, Growing Great Qualities in Kids: The L.A.S.E.R.B.E.A.M. Technique for Bringing Out the Best in Young People, and The Intentional Camp: Putting More Muscle in the Mission of Character & Youth Development (www.michaelbrandwein.com/store). He does both in-person and online training for camps.
Here's what participants from past workshops say:
- “PRICELESS and well worth the money spent. Absolutely recommended: Game-changing and inspiring.”
- “Game-changing: You will leave with a hunger to make your camp even better. No more will you have activities because all camps do; everything you do will contribute to making great kids.”
- “Would recommend this in a heartbeat. It’s offered me the ability to dive deeper into our “why” (mission) and be more intentional in how we train our staff.”
- “A must-do! Not only does it inspire, IT SHOWS WHAT TO DO, HOW TO DO IT, AND HOW TO FIX IT…”
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Questions
Have questions about the Skill-A-Thon? Please contact us at registration@acail.org.
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