This thread is super helpful. The school seems to do a lot to make the the classes close and the community feel smaller, but at the same time does it feel like their is a hierarchy by grade - or less mixing of grades - esp. if cannot sit with other grades? Does this means students only have friends in their grades? And what happens when they have classes with other are students and want to meet over a meal, etc?
Students mingle across all 4 grades for Math and Language classes. Placement is determined over the summer. The English and Social Studies classes are generally linked to your Form. So you’ll have classmates from various grade levels.
The Form 2 students (freshman) eat downstairs in the dining hall. The fifth formers (seniors) have a separate dining hall. The upstairs of the main dining hall has separate rooms with house names. But students can eat wherever they want. The housing system is also separated in a similar manner (Boys/Girls Lower, Boys/Girls Houses, Boys/Girls Upper). If you haven’t heard about the house system yet, you will.
With the new Tsai building, things have changed a bit! Fifth form still has their own dining hall, but 2nd,3rd & 4th formers share the same dining hall in Tsai, with second formers eating on an upper level. So they share the same food line/stations, but have a separate area to eat. Fifth formers also eat in Tsai on weekends. Lots of students have friends in different forms that they meet through classes, sports, extra curriculars etc. Students are welcome to sit with an older friend / group of friends if they are invited to do so.
One of my favorite things about Lville is how second form has their own area of the campus. It makes a big school feel much more intimate, and allows second formers to really get to know their own form. But as I said before, there is still plenty of opportunity for second formers to make friends in other forms.
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Hi
thank you your replies. I am worried that the campus feels separate and with a hierarchy vs one school. One of the things we did like at other schools was the rotating tables so that you felt like you knew everyone on campus this system feels a bit alienating by design. I appreciate the closeness of the grade, but can you speak more to the other bit? How do students come together to feel like lawrenceville vs form or house?
Thank you
Kiddo1 has had no issue with making friends in all forms, and does not see the house system as a dividing factor at all. In fact, the majority of her friends are not in her house, and she has had close friends in upper forms since second form. Every school will have pros and cons, and Lville is not exempt from that. But the idea that the Lville house / form system is alienating, really has no foundation.
Also paging @confusedaboutFA, who will likely have a better answer for this than I do.
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Agreed. Even having now left the House system as a senior, I still regularly go back to both my own and other Circle Houses to visit my prefect and underform friends; I’ve met quite a few sophomores in that way.
Overall, a significant chunk of your interaction at Lawrenceville still happens through classes/clubs/sports, and no matter what House or form you’re in, you’ll make friends there. We also have weekly all-school meetings, which is one way of drumming up school unity; that said, I will definitely say that “House pride” is stronger than school pride here.
At the same time, Lawrenceville is small enough that social groups are really fluid. I’d say I know 80~85% of my grade on a first-name basis (and I’m not popular or anything), and the remainder is just because I haven’t ever really crossed paths with them. Pretty much everyone talks to everyone at some level (even if they’re not necessarily close friends), so in that sense, it really does feel like a community.
Lastly, on dining: With Tsai (the new dining hall), I’ve seen freshmen eating downstairs fairly frequently, and no one bats an eye. It’s pretty frowned upon to enter Abbott (senior dining hall; located on the opposite side of campus from Tsai, and physically attached to a senior House) if you’re not accompanied by a senior, but as long as you’re invited in, no one really cares. I had a friend who probably took close to half of his meals in Abbott throughout junior year.
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Down to the wire here. My daughter is trying to decide between Lville and Choate. A few questions I have is how supportive are students of one another at Lville. And for anyone with experience with both schools, is there a different level of support or engagement b/t faculty and students? Choate seemed to give a vibe that they are more invested/engaged in the students’ growth and exploring new things. Lville didn’t give that same vibe so I am wondering if that is a difference or whether it is just the vibe Choate is intentionally giving (i.e., how they market their education).
My child has found the other kids at Lville to be incredibly supportive, emotionally and academically. At least in her friend group, they are each others biggest cheerleaders. I cannot say the same for her relationship with faculty. She struggled to connect with any faculty members her freshman year, established two great relationships her sophomore year, but lost the connection with both due to a retirement and shift of faculty position. A student’s advisor should be their first faculty connection, but unfortunately, not all faculty are great at advising. But this is a problem you will come across at any school.
ETA: We have been underwhelmed with the relationship between faculty/advisors and students with both of our children (at two very different boarding schools). I suspect it’s due to a combination of faculty being asked to do too many things, and a need to establish clear boundaries between faculty and students, due to the long history of inappropriate relationships at boarding schools.
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We are not a Lawrenceville family but have many close friends who are. My impression is that kids are respectful of each other and most kids find their people but there is social hierarchy IMO. Our revisit gave is the impression that social groups weren’t very diverse or fluid and that was one of the main reasons we chose something else.
Leadership opportunities also seem to come by via a competitive and bureaucratic process. We prefer the more organic process of our own school where the most committed and involved kids naturally rise to the leadership position over the years.
The faculty and teaching at Lville is excellent but revisit is about “feel” IMO, particularly when it comes to these somewhat intangible things. It sounds like Choate felt right. I wouldn’t be suspicious of that feeling.
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On that note, I found that my kids had remarkably better access, support and guidance from their college counseling advisors than any of our Lawrenceville friends.
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Hi Cityran: can you message me as your profile is private