JCSU Feature: IMPACT Camp Opens Doors to Opportunity, Leadership and Hope at Johnson C. Smith University
Image Source: Dr. Cheryl Butler Brayboy
Source: Johnson C. Smith University, Dr. Cheryl Butler Brayboy
Coverage: July 23, 2026
Johnson C. Smith University highlighted its longstanding partnership with Impact Camp as approximately 300 young men returned to the university's campus for a week centered on mentorship, leadership, career exploration and opportunity.
Now in its eighth year at JCSU, Impact Camp uses athletics as an entry point to expose participants to possibilities extending far beyond sports. Throughout the week, campers explored entrepreneurship, military service, skilled trades and higher education while learning practical skills from professionals and community leaders.
Campers received hands-on exposure to construction and skilled trades, developed businesses through a Shark Tank-style competition, learned about college preparation and experienced life on the campus of an HBCU.
Co-founder Shawn Kennedy explained the mission as giving young men both a path and hope while showing them that success after high school can take many forms, including college, entrepreneurship, military service and the skilled trades.
The partnership with Johnson C. Smith University has become an important part of that mission. For eight years, the university has provided Impact Camp access to classrooms, athletic facilities and campus resources, allowing participants to experience the institution firsthand.
The impact can also be seen in participants who return year after year. Some former campers have grown into counselors themselves, creating a cycle in which young people who were once mentored begin investing in the next group behind them.
With hundreds participating and hundreds more unable to secure a spot, the continued growth of Impact Camp points toward an even larger opportunity: expanding the program so more Charlotte youth can access the mentorship, exposure and community it provides.
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