Why camp taught him lessons school never could-and how adults can recreate those moments.

Matt Kaufman has spent most of his life at summer camp, but not because he lacked options. In school, things came easily. He moved quickly through classes and eventually graduated from Cornell University with both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in Operations Research and Industrial Engineering, finishing his master’s program as valedictorian. Camp was different. He was the quiet kid who had to push himself to talk to people, try things that felt uncomfortable, and work through everyday conflicts in a place where no one cared about grades. That early contrast—school rewarding his mind and camp reshaping his whole self—never left him.

As he moved into the Summer Camp industry and eventually became Director at Camp Ramaquois outside New York City, he began to see the same pattern play out in thousands of young people. A child or staff member would arrive one version of themselves and, little by little, become someone steadier, braver, and more connected. The change was consistent enough that Matt found himself asking what was underneath it: what exactly is happening at camp—socially, emotionally, and in the brain—that helps people grow in such reliable ways?

His first book, The Summer Camp MBA, explored that question in the context of leadership, showing how bunk life teaches teamwork in ways most workplaces struggle to create.