Readers who made it to the bottom of last week’s Board of Trustees report may have been surprised to see the announcement of a new Kenyon summer program. Kenyon LA, which will be formally announced before spring break, is the first of several potential Kenyon destination programs. The program, headed by Thomas S. Turgeon Professor of Drama and Film Jonathan Tazewell ’84, will be held from May 31 to June 13, 2026, and is open to all current sophomores and juniors.
Students participating in the two-week program, based in the Emerson College Los Angeles campus on Sunset Boulevard, will split their time between the classroom and the wider city. According to Tory Weber ’02, Kenyon’s director of experiential programs as of October 2025, students will take part in an intensive screenwriting class with Tazewell. Beyond that, students will be able to fully immerse themselves in Los Angeles show business. The program will include job shadows, studio visits and industry professional master classes. The program will not be all work and no play, though, as Tazewell mentioned trips to the Universal Studios theme park and nearby museums as other activities.
“The whole afternoon and evenings will be about networking with alumni and parents who are in the industry, building out networks, job shadowing, having mentoring conversations,” President Julie Kornfeld said in an interview with the Collegian.
Although there was some deliberation about which city to start with, LA ultimately emerged as the clear choice. “Our Kenyon network is incredibly strong in Los Angeles,” Weber noted, “And we have a lot of parents and alumni who have ties to the film and media industry, and are really excited to help make these opportunities available for Kenyon students.”
According to Weber, programming like Kenyon LA has been in the works for years, even before the COVID-19 pandemic. Adding to the College’s experiential learning options was a clear incentive. “It’s something that is not exactly the same as a study abroad program, not exactly the same as a travel-embedded course,” Weber told the Collegian. “It’s a different kind of offering for Kenyon students to explore specific career programs which may appeal to them.”
Applications, which will open before spring break, will include a resume submission and a personal statement of interest. Kenyon LA is open to all majors. However, Weber noted that, depending on the number of applicants, priority may be given to film majors. Weber told the Collegian that she expects 10-12 students will be admitted to the program.
According to Weber, the two-week program will cost $4,000, excluding travel to California. The fee will cover housing, meals, excursions and ground transportation. “One thing that everyone from faculty to donors to the President’s Office really wants is this to be an opportunity that is open to any and all students,” Weber emphasized. “So financial aid will be available to anyone who needs it.”
Weber was quick to add that after this year’s pilot program, Kenyon intends to extend its destination programming next summer to other cities, either New York or Washington, D.C. “The thought is Kenyon D.C. might have a legal studies focus, and Kenyon New York could be any number of things, maybe finance or publishing or art,” she said. “We’re going to learn a lot this summer and then use this as a template for how to grow these programs in other cities.”
“The biggest thing is that I want [students] to be able to establish some relationship with people who are already in the business,” Tazewell said. “It’s critical for our students to find a way in that door.”
Ultimately, Weber hopes that the program will not only give students great networking opportunities, but also an eye-opening experience for their futures. “Hopefully, some of them will discover areas of the film industry that maybe they hadn’t considered before,” she concluded.