The Living City Project

The CityGAP program is an exceptionally well-designed gap year program. I learned a lot about urban design thinking from a diverse group of stakeholders, including average citizens, urban designers, city government employees, educators, architects, and transportation designers.

Tanya and Andy’s extensive network of partners allows us to decode and understand the complex and efficient urbanism of NYC from multiple perspectives that work in synergy. This program has ingrained in me a new lens for looking at cities and systems, and I will never see a new city the same way again.

What I love most about the program is that it's impossible to choose a single favorite part. The program is so dynamic that three months feels too short. In the first month, we walked and explored NYC, immersing ourselves in its culture, history, and foundation, meeting numerous unique contributors to the city’s vibrant tapestry of art and culture. This foundation served us well in the following months as we worked on our group and individual projects.

As educators, Tanya and Andy are endlessly brilliant, supportive, and encouraging. Every day, I was in awe of their work ethic and their ability to manage both the program and the individual learning journeys of the students so sensitively. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to learn from them.

I also had the chance to work with the Department of Transportation, a city government body; Rockaway's Initiative for Sustainability and Equity, an NGO; and 34th Avenue Open Street, a people's collective. We had the honor of collaboratively assessing and rethinking various public spaces in NYC. For two months, our days were filled with visiting nearly every borough of NYC, interviewing stakeholders, conducting thorough research, and building strong camaraderie with our dream team.

The program equips students with invaluable life skills for the 'adult working world,' such as interviewing techniques, working in an office environment, managing professional meetings, conducting practical research, and public speaking, to name a few. I witnessed my peers grow in exceptional confidence over just three months.

With such rich experiences, there is no doubt that students will not only survive but thrive in college, with the comfort of knowing that when they graduate, the 'real world' will be all too familiar. I cannot recommend this program enough; its Top 10 Gap Year Program badge is well-deserved.

Participating in the Living City Project gave me so much insight into the nature of New York City and what makes it unique. Through my experience in the program, I got to meet with the large network of partners that Tanya and Andy provided and had the opportunity to spend especially lots of time collaborating on projects with NYC's District of City Planning and a Brooklyn neighborhood's community board. Throughout these experiences, I developed strong teamwork skills that will serve me well in the future. I also secured a film internship that introduced me to the world of documentary filmmaking, something I would never have been introduced to otherwise. These experiences allowed me to build a strong resume and gain firsthand exposure in the workforce, before starting college. Not to mention living in Midtown Manhattan also provided the perfect base to thoroughly explore (almost) every borough of the city.

Fantastic experience for our daughter! She learned and matured so much in the 3 months of the program. She learned not about NYC but also about herself. CITY GAP taught her more in 3 months than she learned in her first year of college! The program really teaches students about the real NYC and about issues affecting the city and its residents. They learned about the workings of the city and brainstormed practical solutions. Our daughter met so many people and developed a unique and well-thought out independent project as well as collaborated on a comprehensive group project. Also, it was obvious that Andy, Tanya and Zoe cared about the students and worked hard to make their experience memorable and enriching. We highly recommend the Living City Project!

CityGAP is an incredibly unique experience— I am yet to hear of any gap programs that immerse students in experiential, place-based learning in NYC the way the Living City Project does. This program empowered me to explore the passions I already had, and find new interests to fall in love with. Andy and Tanya dedicate their time and energy to their students with more care than any educator I’ve known; their knowledge and enthusiasm is seemingly boundless. Their connections to individual partners as well as organizations enabled us to meet with a wide variety of committed experts who were not only engaged, but excited to be working with us. CityGAP is an excellent program for anyone who is enthusiastic about urban geography, architecture, American history, city planning and design, building equitable communities, learning to navigate a city independently, making friends, eating good food, and exploring new places.

When our son enrolled in the program, we hoped for an exciting immersive experience living in New York City. The website has an excellent explanation of what The Living City project is about. What I’d like to add to that, is that Andy and Tanya are not only incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about their work, their level of support, guidance, kindness and encouragement makes this program exceptional. Along with learning about points of interest and engaging in fun activities, their program truly fostered things like critical thinking, problem solving, and the individual within the city systems. I was blown away by the level of the group and individual projects, and impressed with the range of professional community partners. As a result of this program, my son has a new sense of confidence, independence, and love for the city. This was a life changing experience for us in the best way!