Shaping Thinkers, Shaping Leaders

As the academic calendar turns its pages, the Great Books Summer Program beckons, promising an enriching experience on the campuses of renowned institutions such as Amherst, Stanford, Northwestern, Haverford, Oxford, Dublin, Edinburgh, and online. With programs tailored for high achieving middle and high school students, Great Books offers one to multi-week sessions from late June through early August.

Study with a Distinguished Faculty & Talented Mentors

Now celebrating its 23rd summer, every Great Books session, online and on campus, is led by distinguished faculty from the finest educational institutions in the US and UK. Faculty members are prize-winning authors, scholars, and professors dedicated to sharing their passion for literature and ideas. Imagine your son or daughter participating in a discussion on Don Quixote, led by Professor Ilan Stavans, whom the New York Times described as “The czar of Latino culture in the U.S.” or spending lunch discussing Walt Whitman with a PhD candidate teaching undergraduates at Princeton.

At Great Books, students get a true taste of university life both by living on campus and gaining valuable learning experience with educators from esteemed universities and other luminaries. Great Books has gratefully gained the attention and participation of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning authors, as well as journalists, filmmakers, and poets like Lois Lowry, Sarah Kay, Peter Hedges, Doris Kearns Goodwin, movie director Chris Columbus, Dennis Lehane, and other illustrious guests who have joined Great Books on campus for special sessions with students.

From seminars facilitated by esteemed professors and prestigious special guests to living in dorms, students sample the best of the college experience in a safe environment guided by talented program assistants. Much more than camp counselors, Great Books program assistants hail from prominent colleges and both mentor students academically and coordinate activities that make camp memorable and fun.

Develop as a Thinker

Great Books Summer Program students explore important ideas through the time-honored teaching method of Shared Inquiry. Dating back to the days of Socrates, Shared Inquiry is teaching by asking questions. It encourages in each student the habit of close, reflective, analytical reading and critical thinking. It also teaches empathy and communication skills as students engage together in probing dialogue, in civil discourse, about the big ideas that shape our lives and world.

"My students loved Great Books and reported that it opened their eyes to read better and think more deeply." - Neeraj Mandhana, PhD

Students develop the ability to hone in on key concepts and more readily understand the subtleties in literature and in life. The Socratic approach makes students stronger and more rigorous thinkers. It also makes articulate, confident communicators who are better prepared to thrive in increasingly competitive universities and beyond.

Grow as a Leader

Great Books nurtures the critical thinking skills valued by top universities and graduate schools. Students have gone on to attend Harvard and Harvard Law, Oxford, MIT, Amherst, Dartmouth, NYU, Carnegie Mellon, Stanford, UChicago, Yale and Yale Law, Bowdoin, WPI, Cambridge, Rice, Columbia, Brown, and many more.

Whether students aspire to a future in the humanities, STEM, or both, the skills gained at Great Books are excellent preparation for leadership roles across disciplines. In fact, some of the greatest success stories come from Great Books alumni who have gone on to exciting careers in STEM fields, law, medicine, and business. The future is wide open for these thinkers and leaders.