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Global Education

October 2, 2024

With global education back, students have the world in their hands as they explore Tokyo, Japan, and Prato, Italy.

Academics

Neurodiverse Learning in High School

October 2, 2024

Beacon College is partnering with Lake County Schools offering Dual Enrollment for neurodivergent high school students.

Academics

No. 9 Best Regional College

September 24, 2024

Beacon College in top 10 of the Best Regional Colleges by US News.

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Convocation 2024

August 23, 2024

The Opening Convocation is an annual tradition at Beacon and many other colleges and universities across the country to formally welcome the new school year.

Academics

Chandler’s Math Career

June 14, 2024

Dr. Kevin Chandler developed new approaches to teaching math by grouping the students according to ability.

Academics

Chandler’s Retirement

June 12, 2024

Dr. Shelly Chandler’s send-off at Beacon was full of accolades — the most prominent being the Beacon Medal, the College’s highest honor and recognition for service to college and community.

Academics

Wisdom for Graduates

June 11, 2024

Beacon College graduates took a victory walk in May as the record-setting Class of 2024 took its place in the college’s history.

Academics

Cruise Industry Class

May 2, 2024

Beacon cruise management students boarded Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas and left behind book learning for a three-day excursion into experiential education on the high seas.

Academics

New VPAA Reilly

March 6, 2024

Incoming Beacon College vice president for academic affairs Dr. Kevin Reilly understands that to avoid disrupting a good thing, it’s going to take a lot of input from the people who are already on the ground.

Academics

Strozzo Photoshops Learning into Teaching Students on the Other Side of the World

February 6, 2024

During the winter holiday season, Beacon College's Brittany Strozzo served as a teacher for Project Discovery in the United Arab Emirates.

Academics

Love of Books Unites Beacon Couple in a Chapter of Romance

February 1, 2024

Beacon College has a handful of married couples working on campus, but to celebrate Valentine’s Day, we’re profiling one couple’s extraordinary international tale.

Academics

New Global Ed Programs Takes Students to Land of the Rising Sun

December 8, 2023

A new study abroad program will send Beacon College students to the land of anime, gaming, and technology for 12 weeks starting in February.

With Global Education Back, Students Have the World in their Hands

By Gabrielle Russon

Ask AJ Evdokimo about his favorite memories from school last semester, and you’ll hear stories about riding around Tokyo in a go-kart, eating the most tender meat he’s ever tasted and exploring Japan’s convenience stores that were like 7-Eleven on steroids. He loved learning about the country’s history and tech culture while he got closer with his Beacon College study abroad mates.

For Evdokimo, going abroad was an adventure, but it helped him gain independence as he navigated a new language and mastered a giant public transit system.

“It’s a great opportunity to not only learn, but to see the world and make friends,” said Evdokimo, 21, a Beacon business management senior from Arizona. “It was so fun. I would go back in a heartbeat.”

Like many higher education institutions across the country, Beacon College’s study programs are bouncing back and growing once again after the pandemic shut down school life and travel.

The Beacon in Tokyo program is the newest expansion of Beacon’s study abroad program which is believed to be the first and only semester-long global education program for neurodivergent students in the country.

For the first time ever, Beacon sent Evdokimo and 20 other students to Japan this year. The group returned in late April and Beacon plans to send another cohort in early 2025.

The interest for Japan has been high especially for the college students who love playing video games, watching anime and using technology, said Mike Fallon, a Beacon business instructor who co-led the program this year.

“The first group in Japan, we filled up. We had a waiting list,” Fallon said. “And this new group, it looks like we will have at least 20, which was our target range. They’re excited to go to Japan.”

For the past six or so years, Beacon also sent students to the medieval city of Prato in Italy’s Tuscany region. A group of 13 students will return from Beacon in Tuscany on Dec. 6 after a semester study that includes going to Venice and Rome (and undoubtedly eating pasta their taste buds won’t soon forget).

In addition to the two semester-long trips, Beacon also offers a shorter international trip, typically about three weeks during the summer. In 2025, the itinerary includes Greece and Italy.

“As you can imagine, it’s absolutely life-changing for our students,” said Kevin Reilly, Beacon’s new vice president for academic affairs. “For many of them, it’s their first trip abroad. It’s just a really important part of their learning experience here at the college.”

Reilly said for all students — especially those who are neurodivergent — studying abroad exposes them to new opportunities they otherwise miss out on. Beacon students return to the United States with a newfound confidence after traveling abroad and dealing with language barriers and a different environment, he said.

“They come back feeling like they can handle a variety of challenges,” Reilly said. “They can take chances. They can push themselves.”

And one selling point is Beacon’s classes abroad cost the same as tuition at Leesburg although the trip does have higher housing expenses than living on campus, Reilly said.

“When you start to talk about what room and board costs here versus there, it’s not a lot extra. It really isn’t,” Reilly said.

During this year’s Japan trip, students learned about tea ceremonies and went on excursions to the beautiful Kyoto famous for its shrines and geishas.

On weekends, students rode trains at the world’s biggest train station and planned itineraries to explore a museum or visit a ramen restaurant. If their parents came to visit, the students took control and led them around.

“They became experts,” Fallon said. I just stood back and watched and (thought), ‘Wow. This is worth it right here.’”