Travel Programs

Travel Programs

Lawrenceville's Harkness Travel Program uses creative and holistic approaches to experiential learning in order to promote the development of responsible leadership, global citizenship, self-awareness, and interdisciplinary knowledge in our student travelers.

The Harkness Travel Program embodies the Lawrenceville mission by bringing both House and Harkness learning along with us. Whether through service, scientific research, cultural exchange, artistic performance, historical inquiry, or engagement with the natural world, our programs are dedicated to offering every student the opportunity to develop their awareness of global issues and different cultures and communities, and to establish personal connections to others around the world.
Lawrenceville students hiking in Austira

Program Themes

Programs are led by dedicated faculty members who share their expertise as facilitators of our experiential learning objectives. The intention of Lawrenceville's travel program is not to lead students through a place and tell them what to know; it is to empower them to make sense of the experience for themselves by turning the world into another Lawrenceville classroom.

Harkness Travel - Italy
Academic Trip: Italy

Students explored locations which mark major milestones in the life of Renaissance revolutionary, Galileo Galilei. This exciting trip offered the travelers a personal experience: tracing the journey of Galileo from his humble beginnings as a professor of Mathematics in Pisa through to his final years under house arrest in Florence.

Harkness Travel - Scotland
Cultural Trip: Scotland

In this program, Lawrenceville students traveled to the United Kingdom - both England and Scotland - as a participating theatre ensemble in the 2018 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The event was held in August, allowing the travelers to explore and perform in beautiful and historic Edinburgh, Scotland.

Harkness Travel - The Grand Canyon
Outdoor Trip: The Grand Canyon

In March, 2019, students traveled to the backcountry of northern Arizona for 10 days. The trip began in the red rocks country near Sedona before exploring the area along the south rim of the Grand Canyon and numerous side canyons, all with the wondrous Colorado River below.

Harkness Travel - Tanzania
Service Trip: Tanzania

In partnership with the Janada L. Batchelor Foundation for Children (JBFC), Lawrenceville students had an exciting opportunity to work alongside humanitarian Chris Gates (JBFC founder) and the students of JBFC’s vibrant orphanage and school. JBFC is located in Kitongo, about 30 miles east of Mwanza, Tanzania’s second largest city.

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Study Abroad

School Year Abroad (SYA) is a cultural immersion and language program that allows students the opportunity to study in France, Italy, or Spain for a five-week summer or for an entire academic year. Students who study abroad have the opportunity to better understand new cultures, to speak another language, to grasp pressing socio-economic concepts, and to become informed citizens.

Learn More About School Year Abroad

 

Academic Year Programs

France  |  Italy  |  Spain

Participants live with host families and pursue a course of study in both English and the language of their host country under the guidance of SYA’s experienced teachers. SYA provides academic credit in addition to college testing and guidance, enabling students to graduate from Lawrenceville with their own class while helping to prepare them for selective colleges and universities. Students apply in their Third or Fourth Form year to attend SYA in the Fourth or Fifth Form year. The SYA year ends in time for Fifth Formers to return for their Lawrenceville graduation.

 

Summer Programs

France  |  Spain

This five-week summer program is open to Second, Third, and Fourth Form students. There is a minimum language requirement of two years in the host language for France and Spain.

There are no Lawrenceville faculty on this program. All arrangements and communication are done directly with SYA.

If you are a Viault Scholar, the Harkness Travel Office can assist with, and will reimburse, the cost of airfare.

Dates

June 17 - July 21, 2026

Target Student Population

This trip is open to all Second - Fourth Form students.

Student Expectations

There is a minimum language requirement of two years in the host language for France and Spain.

Passports MUST be valid through December 31, 2026! If the passport will expire before that date, students should apply for a replacement as soon as possible.

Viault Family International Fund

The Viault Family International Fund sponsors students to attend an immersive international summer program. With this generous, need-based support, Lawrenceville is able to offer up to eight students the ability to apply for admission into one SYA summer program or allow a student to seek approval for funding to another immersive international summer program.

School Year Abroad - Spain
School Year Abroad - Italy
School Year Abroad - France