The greater Philadelphia area is lucky to abound with stellar enrichment options for children throughout the scholastic year, but an oft-overlooked option comes in the summer months. One national expert, Justin Lavner of Lavner Camps, believes wholeheartedly in the value of encouraging children to spend the warmer months engaged in learning a new skill or honing an existing one.
“As a person, whether a child or adult, it is always important to learn and grow, which in many ways can translate to overall happiness,” CEO/Executive Director Lavner says. “Our summer enrichment programs have a camp culture that is super fun, but the camps are also full of valuable learning opportunities. At camp, our campers have the opportunity to specialize in various areas of interest, learn from great instructors and engage in curricula that is developed by our in-house experts. The goal is for each camper to build skills, gain confidence, make friends and have tons of fun!”
Lavner Camps, which span the U.S. from the East Coast to California, has myriad locations throughout this area, specializing in 35+ areas in sports, technology, the arts and education. With 14 locations in PA, NJ and DE, Lavner Camps is a national leader in helping young people reach their dreams through exploration and discovery.
“I have known the Lavner Camps from the time when Justin Lavner was standing on the tennis court working with the kids himself,” says Christian Terwiesch, father of Lavner campers and professor at the Wharton School – University of Pennsylvania. “All three of my kids played tennis with Justin, who was an outstanding coach and both passionate and professional about his camp.
“Back then, Justin already had the vision to grow his tennis camp into high level specialty camps that allow kids to succeed in sports, tech and the arts,” Terwiesch continues. “I have stayed in touch with Justin and have been impressed by how he was able to maintain the camp culture of learning, performance and fun as he scaled his camps up from one tennis court to camps offered at the national level.”
Lavner Camps is a family-owned and -operated business that has blossomed into premier destinations for summer fun, safety and high-quality learning opportunities.
“We believe that we are the national leaders in summer enrichment camps,” Lavner says. “We are accredited by the American Camp Association, which has 400+ standards for health and safety, showing our commitment to safety first. Our camp programs are developed in-house by our experts — we have our own sports, technology and arts departments, which allow us to create and control high level camp experiences that we deliver to our many campers.” For summer staff, Lavner Camps employs a carefully selected, passionate and talented staff, and hires fewer than 8 percent of applicants.
Their expert, full-time leadership team consists of employees with training and education from institutions including the University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, Columbia University, Cornell University, Brandeis University and more.
“This group knows high-quality enrichment programming and how to deliver on a camp model that optimizes the experience for our campers and families,” Lavner says of his staff. “We recently sent our tech director to Tokyo for two weeks to do additional research on robotics and Artificial Intelligence, in preparation for our Robotics with AI camp that we now offer at many of our locations throughout the U.S. This is the type of commitment we put forth to develop incredible camps for our campers.
“While our camps are really fun, they are also result-driven, meaning that our programs work to ensure that campers are learning and building skills,” Lavner continues. “When parents send their children to Lavner Camps, they are truly investing in their child — skill-building, safety, happiness, education, and it’s our priority to make sure that our camp families have an amazing experience with us from start through finish.”
Lavner Camps is not just a camp, it’s a place with purpose — to give thousands of kids an incredible experience each summer, prepare them with real-world skills, and welcome them to our amazing camp family. To learn more about Lavner Camps, visit lavnercamps.com.
