John Luria named head of bridge-year program

John Luria has been named the new bridge-year program’s first director, a position he will assume in December, University officials announced last week. The program, which was approved this summer, will begin as a pilot next fall with around 20 students from the Class of 2013. Through the program, admitted students will have the option of embarking on a tuition-free gap year in a foreign country before matriculating. While the cost of the program will vary depending on how participants spend the year, the University will extend financial aid to families with demonstrated need.

Luria, who grew up in Independence, Ohio, a small suburb of Cleveland, has almost two decades of experience in international program management. In 2002, Luria became director of student services at the Council on International Educational Exchange Study Center in Seville, Spain. Before that, he worked at Georgetown University, where he spent 10 years rising through the ranks to the role of associate director of international student services.

“I’ve always been interested in international affairs and intercultural communication,” he said in an interview.

He added that his career goals were shaped by a yearlong home-stay program in France he participated in through AFS Intercultural Programs right after high school.

“It opened up my eyes in terms of developing intercultural competence,” he explained. “Before, I didn’t even know there was a field for this.”

In college, Luria pursued hotel and restaurant management until he realized how much he missed the international aspect of his stay in France. To satisfy his desire for more international exposure, he returned to AFS as an orientation logistics coordinator and summer program coordinator.

In addition to his experience with international programs, Luria holds a master’s degree in Latin American studies from Georgetown’s School of Foreign Service.

The gap-year program, which eventually will include about 100 incoming freshmen per year, was endorsed and organized by a working group of faculty, students and staff. Comparative literature department chair Sandra Bermann, who headed the group, said its members determined that the program will provide numerous benefits to students.

“They’ll have this opportunity to gain a real international education, which I think is so important because it looks to the future,” she said. “[Their] generation will be part of a global community, and to be leaders ‘in the nation’s service and in the service of all nations,’ it will be an enormous advantage to understand what it means to live and work in a different culture.”

Bermann added that the program can also serve as a valuable chance for students who feel like they need to take a break after putting in a lot of effort in high school.

“It will be an opportunity to serve others, and that’s not offered in many students’ high school experiences because they have to work so hard in order to achieve individual goals, ‘I’-oriented goals,” she explained. “They’ll be able to put their lives in the context of other human beings, a social context where the ‘you’ is essential.”

Participating students will engage in public service by working with governmental and nonprofit organizations while abroad. Though faculty will keep in touch with them during their stays, students will also be encouraged to keep fellow students updated on their experiences through tools like facebook.com and personal blogs.

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Members of the Class of 2013 will receive an invitation to apply for the program after they have decided to enroll at the University, according to a statement on the Admission Office’s website. Selection decisions will be made based on the application, interviews and letters of recommendation.

Associate Provost for International Initiatives Diana Davies, a member of the working group, noted the novelty of the program.

“I don’t think such a program exists yet” at any other U.S. university, she said. “I believe that we are truly doing something revolutionary, so we don’t have a lot of models to look at.”

Davies added that to compensate for the lack of precedent, the University will use the expertise of partner organizations, which it is currently selecting, to determine specific placements, arrange housing and provide logistical support.

If the program is successful, Davies said, it might be broadened to include current students.

“Somewhere down the road, [that] is something we will definitely consider,” she explained. “It will be interesting to see what comes of the pilot, so it is definitely something the University is open to.”