Lawrenceville School - Review #1

What makes Lawrenceville unique from other boarding schools is definitely its house and harkness method. Harkness is especially unique because it allows for students to everyday engage critically with the text they are reading and their peers. It really taught me how to be a better thinker, a better speaker, and a more clear/nuanced reader. House is also really unique to Lawrenceville as students are assigned to a specific house their sophmore and junior year (Hogwarts style). This is super cool and there are a lot of traditions that come along with it.

I learned a lot about myself at Lville and developed into a young adult. I think Lville has equipped me well for excelling at UPenn and other competitive schools. I feel that I know how I am because of Lawrenceville, as it tests you to be the best person you can be. For that, I am very grateful for my Lville experience. The people and the teachers at Lville are amazing and one of a kind. I think that has made my experience really good. In terms of diversity and equity, I think Lawrenceville has made great strides with low-income and students of color. I think there is a ways to go, but I do see that there is active energy from students, teachers, and administrators to make positive changes.

Advice before going to Lawrenceville would definitely be don't get to involved and too overwhelmed too soon. Freshman and sophmore year are about finding who you are, where you fit, and what you want to do. Explore many things, be brave and be open and sincere. The best experiences at Lawrenceville stem from people that take this advice and go about their lives in this way. Also, advice for low income students applying to Lville. Lville is great with financial aid and provides a lot of financial help. It was hard for me when I first came to Lville because it is a bit of a culture shock given the wealth that most students possess. Don't let this scare you as Lville gives you an opportunity to compete on the same plane.

Overall, what I liked most about Lawrenceville is the people and the teachers. My friends are one of a kind amazing people who have supported me throughout Lville and will be there for me for the rest of my life. There are so many different types of people at Lville that make every class interesting and every moment an opportunity to learn and strengthen community ties. The teachers at Lville really deeply care which is something that you won't find at every school. I've found mentors for life at Lville and the ability to connect with adults who are not my family unlike ever before.

I was in McClellan so I have rep to McC so make sure to check it out. Visit the Jigger and the library, as they are two really cool places on campus. If you can definitely go to a basketball game or a lacrosse game as those are always lit/a good time. Other than that, I would just say observe and see if you can fit into Lawrenceville. I actually kind of didn't like Lville during my revisit day because it was intimidating but now I love Lville and miss it, so don't be intimidated or scared.

Academically, the best thing about Lawrenceville is its humanities programs and its Harkness method. Lawrenceville really prepares students to think more critically and to read more nuanced. In the Harkness method, every student is equipped with bringing their analysis to the table. I think this is really good because it forces students to study the material and to learn how to present their thoughts/opinions/analysis very well. I was a shy student freshman year but by the time I WAS a senior, I was a very active participant, which aided in my personal growth. Lawrenceville has really individualized form of learning that allows for very specific feedback which made it very possible for me to effectively grow as a learner and a writer.

Athletics are pretty much compulsory for all students. Given this, a majority of the school population is very athletic and takes sports teams very seriously. I really enjoyed my time at Lawrenceville as a member of Varsity Soccer, JV lacrosse, and freshman basketball. I had never played lacrosse before so it was really dope that Lvile allowed me to try a completely new sport. I was/am a low income student and the coach on the team gave me access to a lacrosse stick and goggles for free which was really kind. I think Lawrenceville is very good at sports for the private and MAPL league. It truly depends on the sport though.

I was not really in this component of this Lawrenceville but I did attend a lot of visual arts, music and theatre shows/performances/etc. Lawrenceville has a really amazing theatre program that has a number of shows with different plays a year. I've attended every year I was at Lawrenceville and it was super amazing and everyone is really talented. From what I understand from friends in the program, the theatre program is pretty competitive. As for art, there is an amazing art building solely dedicated to visual arts. Freshman and sophmore year students take art, drama, or music class which is really good and encourages students like me to focus on arts in a new way. My art teachers were always super cool and very interesting people (shoutout to Mr. Domb and Mrs. Greenfield). Overall, I would say that the Visual Arts, Music, and Theatre programs are very well developed programs with a lot of opportunities for students to get involved including plays, Winterfest (small student directed plays), freshman Shakespeare, student art exhibitions, senior art projects, Spring Dance Concert, etc. These programs are super great and accessible for students.

Extracurricular activities are very important components of the Lawrenceville experience. Most if not all people are involved in extracurricular activities during their time at Lawrenceville. There are a bunch of extracurricular activities and if there aren't then you can definitely create a new club. I was part of Latinos Unidos, the Lawrence, Diversity Council, and Young Dem. L ville really let you explore new clubs and activities. I loved participating in these activities as I feel like they really run the culture of Lawrenceville. I think L ville is uniquely good at supporting student initiatives. Students really take these clubs seriously and everyone tunes in to see new leadership for clubs.

Dorm life at Lawrenceville is really bustling. You become friends with people in your house. There are certain rules that dictate lights out your freshman, sophmore and junior year. Senior year there are no lights and internet all night all day. You check in at a certain time every day with Saturdays having a later time. It was really cool because practically everyone freshman year has their own room which allows everyone to transition really well as you have your own space and don't have to learn how to be away from home while living with someone new/a stranger. From then on, sophmore year you have a roommate. I didn't know my roommate sophmore year but we became friends and had a good time. Junior year I had a single and senior year I roomed with two of my best friends. I think dorm life is really good at Lville. There are rules and regs that can be annoying but you bond so much with people in your dorm and you really get to know your housemasters and the check in staff which is really cool. Also, every Sat night you have feed which is food like pizza, Chinese food, even Chipotle brought to students which you eat as a house.

Dining at Lawrenceville was okay with there being some really good food and then some mediocre food. There wasn't a huge selection of food everyday but you always had your salad bar, main dishes, sandwich station, bagel station, and sometimes another specialty bar. In retrospect now that I am at UPenn, Lville food was actually pretty good in comparison to food at the college/university level. I enjoyed how much effort and time that the staff took in making the food. Some of the staff became part of my support system at Lawrenceville which was really cool because I saw them for four years everyday practically. The hours for dining are pretty restrictive but everyone eats at the same time so there were never really any issues with that. Lville will definitely keep you well fed.

Lawrenceville the town is a really cute town with a couple of good places to eat. Most people go to TJs for pizza and American style foods like cheesesteak. There is a Starbucks and a Gingered Peach (pastries) and various other restaurants also for students. Lville as a town is really small and feels part of campus. It has good energy and a nice like family vibe. It's a cool little place for a boarding school. Students go to Princeton over the weekend if they want to sample more food options and more activities. Most stuff like movie theaters requires a Uber ride, although the school occasionally provides buses to places like Target, the movie theater, etc.

There are two types of social life. The social life of the everyday which means hanging out with friends, eating together, doing random stuff together, going to Sbucks, etc. Lawrenceville dominates at this. Everyone has their own friends and this form of social life is thriving, as people hang out all the time through sports, clubs, doing homework, and dorm life. Lville really allows you to create extremely deep connections with people that are incredibly rewarding. In terms of like Saturday nights, there is always dances and parties or events that people can attend. Lville can be boring at times based on this because there is so much rules and regs about when to check in, when you can have opposite sex in your room, and illicit activities are punished severely. If you want to have a huge bustling party scene, you won't find it at Lville in terms of that. But you will find amazing people that you will be friends with forever and parties outside of Lville environment with these people.