Precollege Programs
Lewis & Clark offers a variety of high-quality, academically focused summer programming, just for high school students.
Our precollege summer programs are excellent preparation for aspiring writers, debaters, entrepreneurs, dramatists, health leaders, and data journalists. Make the most of your summer by spending a week on the most beautiful college campus in the country while learning from experts and sharpening your skills. You’ll leave Lewis & Clark better prepared for your future and for life at college.
Earn at Least $20,000 in Scholarship Funds to Attend L&C*
Students who complete a precollege summer program and are later admitted to L&C will get preferential consideration for merit-based aid and are guaranteed to receive a minimum of $20,000/year in renewable scholarship funding in the form of a Sequoia or Oregon Maple scholarship.
*Sequoia or Oregon Maple academic merit scholarships granted at the time of admission will already take into account any participation in a Lewis & Clark precollege summer program. Students with strong academic credentials who attend a precollege summer program and are later admitted to Lewis & Clark may find they are eligible for a Sequoia or Oregon Maple scholarship that exceeds the $20,000/year guaranteed minimum!
Precollege Program Interest Form
Our Programs
Circular Innovation Challenge
An entrepreneurship program by Lewis & Clark’s Bates Center for Entrepreneurship and Leadership, held July 6–11, 2025.
Learn the processes for entrepreneurship and innovation for a more sustainable future. Throughout the week, you will be inspired by entrepreneurs, leaders, and college student mentors and learn strategies for ideation and innovation, including lean startup methodology and the business model canvas. We’ve built an inclusive and transformative experience that will include inspirational speakers, mentorship, activities and challenges, the Portland classics, and great (circular) prizes.
Data in Action: Sustainability, Science, and Storytelling
An immersive camp about the world of data science and data journalism focused on environmental issues, held from July 20–25, 2025.
Over the course of the week, you will learn how to analyze and communicate data through hands-on experience with environmental datasets. Guided by Lewis & Clark faculty, you will gain valuable insights into the tools and techniques used to create compelling data-driven stories. You will choose a topic you are passionate about and produce your own interactive piece of data journalism, sharpening your skills in data visualization, interpretation, and storytelling. With mentorship, guest speakers, and collaborative activities, this camp will empower you to use data as a powerful tool for understanding and advocating for a more sustainable future.
Fir Acres Writing Workshop
A premier residential summer creative writing program, held June 22–July 5, 2025.
Join 60 other high school students from across the country to study great writing and produce your own under the guidance of dynamic, thoughtful, published faculty. At night, you will socialize, meet and hear from distinguished visiting writers, and work on your own poetry, fiction, and creative prose.
Future Health Leaders:
Care Begins Here
A program for students interested in changing the world through health studies, held from July 13–18, 2025.
Discover the science behind health innovations by spending time in research labs at Lewis & Clark and nearby Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). Participating in this mini-med school will be an exciting way to dive into health care careers and receive certification in CPR. Spend your week making new friends, and leave camp with a number of personal and professional connections, new hands-on skills and leadership experiences, a deeper understanding of health care careers, and a leg up in your pursuit of health-related studies.
Immersive Summer Theatre Program
A creative theatre intensive for actors, directors, playwrights, and more, held June 15–28, 2025.
Join other gifted high school theatre artists—from within our region and abroad—who have been selected to study and create work over the course of two immersive weeks at our renowned Fir Acres Theatre. You will attend workshops and masterclasses taught by professionals, audition for and rehearse a fully produced musical and cabaret, soak in campus life, and enjoy the artistic and cultural offerings of Portland, Oregon, and the Pacific Northwest.
Portland Speech and Debate Institute
An immersive speech and debate program for both residential and commuter students, held July 14–26, 2025.
We welcome students of all levels, whether novice, varsity, or somewhere in between. Learn World Schools, Lincoln-Douglas, Parliamentary, Public Forum, or Policy speech and debate formats through drills, labs, and individualized attention from faculty. Our curriculum is designed to improve your debating skills on every level, from local to national circuits. We will also have games, picnics, movies, and a bunch of other fun activities that integrate the educational experience with entertainment.
What to Expect
Each program has its own schedule, but here’s a general idea of what you can expect.
- Breakfast in our gorgeous Fields Dining Hall, surrounded by your fellow program attendees and peers in other programs.
- Spend the day with hands-on learning and individualized attention from program experts, two hallmarks of each of our summer programs.
- Attend field trips off campus, exploring the engaging city of Portland: food trucks, rivers, hiking, and more.
- Socialize and bond with your new friends during fun evening activities, often led by your resident advisors in your hall!
Facility Highlights
Fir Acres Theatre
Fir Acres Theatre is home to the Black Box and Main Stage venues, as well as the Department of Theatre. Designed to support a process-oriented program, the integrated facility also houses dance space and complete production facilities, including a scenery shop, a design studio, a costume construction room, dressing rooms, rehearsal areas, and a student lounge. The Lewis & Clark Immersive Summer Theatre Program will be held in this space.
Fowler Student Center
In this campus hub, which was extensively renovated in 2023, you’ll find our bookstore and many of the offices providing direct student services. The building also houses the offices for undergraduate student groups, including student government and media, as well as inviting common spaces and a serene inner courtyard. You will have your meals in Fowler’s Fields Dining Hall, our main dining spot on the undergraduate campus.
Frank Manor House and the Estate Gardens
Frank Manor House, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, was part of the original Fir Acres estate owned by Lloyd Frank, member of a local department store family. It now houses several offices, including those of undergraduate admissions and the president of Lewis & Clark. Outside the Manor House, you will find the beautiful Estate Gardens and Reflecting Pool, plus Portland’s best view of Mount Hood!
J.R. Howard Hall
LEED Gold-certified John R. Howard Hall contains numerous academic offices, classrooms, and meeting areas, as well as the Symbolic and Quantitative Reasoning Center, a bicycle co-op, and the Bates Center for Entrepreneurship and Leadership. All of the precollege summer programs will be held in classrooms in this building, with the exception of the theatre program.
Pamplin Sports Center
Pamplin Sports Center houses a 2,300-seat main gym, weight room, training room, offices, classrooms, and locker rooms. It is adjacent to the Zehntbauer Swimming Pavilion and Griswold Stadium, with an eight-lane track and artificial turf field.
Platt-Howard Residence Hall
Platt-Howard is one of the largest of Lewis & Clark’s housing options. It houses the Platteau, a student-run art center with a ceramics studio, photography lab, music practice room, dance studio, and common space for performances, painting, and other artistic pursuits. Most summer program attendees will be staying in this hall.
FAQ
Other Summer Programming
There are several others types of summer programs offered at Lewis & Clark, including sports camps and coding and STEM camps.