Cultural immersion experiences are a springboard to learning and leadership

A growing number of educators, parents and students say travel is the ultimate education, and cultural immersion programs offered during spring and summer breaks have the power to change young lives. “Travel has taught me to not be afraid to step outside of my comfort zone,” says Eva Jasinski, 18, of Urbanna, Va., who studied in India as a sophomore and in Senegal a year later. “The most incredible experiences happen when you allow yourself to be challenged, feel uncomfortable and be confronted with completely new perspectives.” According to a study by the nonprofit Institute of International Education and the U.S. Department of State, about 300,000 U.S. students left the country to study in other countries in 2013-14, the most recent figures available.(more)