What, you wanted Madonna or Letterman's Smile?

Last night, I attended the Los Angeles Gap Year Fair at Harvard-Westlake School.  For those not in know, the term “gap year” typically connotes a separate year spent between high school graduation and the start of college.  Sometimes the “year” may be only a few months and other times it really is a full year.  (If you want to learn more, here’s an excellent place to start: http://www.planetgapyear.com/)

Much like you’d see at a college fair, 35 outfits and organizations set up table staffed by reps to discuss everything from the well-known National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) to City Year that is a service program part of AmeriCorps to Brown Ledge Gap Year where students learn documentary film production and then create their own doc film in New Orleans/El Paso.  The wide variety was somewhat startling as compared to last year’s fair, there were nearly twice as many tables!

I’m heartened to see the growth in interest for gap years.  They’re not for everyone, but boy, for the right kid, it’s a perfect way to unwind from the stress of high school, recharge in a purposeful way, and start college one year wiser and more mature.  A mother whose daughter did a gap program spoke of her child living in a village of Senegal for several months with no electricity, running water or (gasp!) Internet.  I couldn’t help but think how much more interesting that young woman will be wherever she matriculates this fall.  She’ll have her own nuanced views on global development, the environment, African music, whatever and all informed by personal experience.  Studies have repeatedly shown that students who engage in a gap program perform better academically in college. Click here to read more »