Community Service, Leadership & Clubs

Beyond LA’s classroom and co-curricular program, students are encouraged to become involved and active members of our student-centered community.

Community Service

Lawrence Academy partners with about a dozen local organizations to offer community service opportunities on weekends throughout the school year. In recent years, they have included:

Rise Against Hunger’s meal-packaging event;
a Habitat for Humanity house build;
serving dinner at the Nashua, N.H.,
Soup Kitchen & Shelter;
acting as “buddies” for Miracle League Baseball;
opportunities with Catie’s Closet, Groton Neighbors, Sleep in Heavenly Peace, Blankets of Love’s Project Linus, the Nashoba Park Assisted Living Center;

and more. Students may also arrange their own service opportunities in or near their home communities, as long as they complete the work during the school year.

Leadership

In addition to these clubs, a number of affinity groups meet on a monthly basis. These adult-facilitated spaces offer students who share an identity a place to gather and talk about their common issues.

For those students who aspire to lead the Lawrence Academy community in one way or another, select opportunities are available as well.

Student Government

Spartan Leaders

Elm Tree Society

Lawrence Academy’s Elm Tree Society is a select group of student tour guides who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in helping the Admissions Office: They represent the school at Fall Open House, in-home receptions, or other events during the year. Elm Tree Society members have proven themselves as consistent and reliable, confident and poised, and well-spoken and knowledgeable campus guides. Current Elm Tree Society members vote in new members each spring.

Student Clubs

Dozens of special interest-driven and community service-focused clubs exist on campus, led by students and overseen by faculty advisors.

At least 20 clubs will operate during the 2020-2021 school year.

Academic Clubs

Concordia Spaces

Concordia Spaces are student-driven areas that mirror the mission of Lawrence Academy in recognizing students for who they are and inspiring them to take responsibility for who they want to become; club offerings reflect the diverse, intersectional identities of the LA student body. Concordia Clubs promote awareness of culture and social differences while allowing students to design and implement events, actively engage with the larger Lawrence Academy and Groton communities through service-learning projects, and reflect on their roles as informed global citizens striving for the common good for all.

Club 1899: A gathering space that promotes feminism. Click here to look at photos from a recent 1899 event.

Gender Sexuality Alliance: A safe place for students to come together and reflect on what it means to be a part of or an ally for the LGBTQIA+ community by providing students with an awareness of current events, understanding of terminologies, and opportunity to reflect on their own identities, support systems, and truths as they understand them now.

LA Embassy: A gathering space designed to celebrate the diversity of Lawrence Academy’s international student population.

Men’s Club: A place to promote chivalry and being “a gentleman,” and to discuss topics such as masculinity.

Did Jew Know (Religious Club): A space to recognize spirituality and celebrate Jewish culture.

The Politics Club: A non-partisan campus organization for students to engage in active, moderated debates surrounding hot-button fiscal and sociocultural issues in the political spotlight. The Politics Club also aims to engage the LA community in a constructive dialogue about political beliefs and leanings; through mock elections, voter registration drives, and political event watch parties, the club hopes to inspire more students to advocate for their beliefs and understand how their voices can make a difference in all levels of government.

Umoja: A gathering space for students to learn about and celebrate the diversity that exists at Lawrence Academy, connect across cultural lines, and learn about varying racial and cultural groups represented at LA. Students are equipped with the tools to talk about racial and cultural differences, learn about both historical and current events, and reflect on their own multicultural and intersectional identities.

The student leaders of each Concordia Club together form LA’s Moral Courage Task Force, which meets once per month to set agendas for each Concordia Club and affinity group gathering. The task force’s responsibilities include hosting Chat & Chew events to discuss current events, plan Cultural Coffeehouse activities, and assist with community events.

Service Clubs

Community Service Advisory Board (LA Cares & Rotary Interact Club): LA Cares is responsible for advising, planning, and organizing community service activities, events, and opportunities for the LA community.

Environmental Sustainability Council: The Environmental Sustainability Council assists the LA community in becoming greener and more sustainable, while raising awareness about environmental issues around the world.

Rise Against Hunger (RAH): Through Rise Against Hunger, students interested in ending world hunger work together to sponsor an annual meal-packaging event. The club runs a number of activities throughout the year that offer community service hours and build community. Click here to watch last year's Rise Against Hunger video.

Special Interest Clubs

Art for All: This club offers a community for visual art lovers to explore their interests. Members also help faculty and other clubs and groups create art pieces and posters to advertise their events.

PAWsitive Vibes: This club builds community through a love of dogs. Members talk about issues facing animals and how humans can help — and, of course, play with faculty dogs!

S[Hair]: This club is a safe place to share about, learn more regarding, and connect with others over hair care, especially curly hair care.

Yard Games Club: This club is a laid-back, fun place for competitive, but friendly, yard game play.

On-Campus Student-lead Publications

Navigation

Hitting the Books

Interested in learning more about Lawrence Academy's many class offerings? Visit our academic program pages to discover the options.

"It started out as an actual service project to run a meal packaging event and it morphed into a club [the Rise Against Hunger Club]. So now we have this set of students who are working every year to raise a certain set of money so that we can run a meal packaging event."

Kimberly Poulin, Assistant Dean of Students, Director of Community Engagement

CS Hour Requirement

Helping others is an ongoing act of community citizenship, not something you do once and consider it done. Lawrence Academy hopes to instill in its students the importance of playing an active, continuous role in bettering the world around them. Therefore, all students are required to complete six hours of community service during each academic year.

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Community Service, Leadership & Clubs

Beyond LA’s classroom and co-curricular program, students are encouraged to become involved and active members of our student-centered community.