For Professor Rogan Kersh, becoming the academic director of NYU Florence and the vice chancellor for Global Programs is the culmination of a lifelong interest in world cultures—and a full-circle moment in his history with NYU.

From 2006 to 2012, Kersh was the associate dean of the NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. There, among his other responsibilities, he was involved in the early planning stages of NYU Abu Dhabi, which fueled his passion for enhancing students’ global outlooks. For the next decade, Kersh served as provost at his alma mater, Wake Forest University, where he helped expand overseas study programs and global cultural opportunities on campus. In the fall of 2022, he spent a semester at DIS Copenhagen, teaching a course and engaging closely with their leadership to better understand the changing state of global education.

Now that he’s back at NYU, Global Dimensions caught up with Kersh to discuss his return to the University and his goals for NYU Florence.

What drew you back to NYU and specifically to NYU Florence?

I’ve remained close to many cherished NYU colleagues, and it will be wonderful to renew those relationships. For an organization this large and multinational, it’s remarkable how important personal connections are. As for NYU Florence: if you’ve visited, you know.

In your new role, what are your key goals for the site?

NYU Florence is at once a first-class study away program and a convening site important to NYU and to the city of Florence. Sustaining that balance, attending both to academic excellence and community engagement, feels essential.

I plan on learning as fully as I can about existing curricula, courses, and programs, and hearing from faculty and staff about the opportunities they see to enhance this wonderful site. Then, I will focus on working with them to help realize those opportunities.

What do you recommend students studying away at NYU Florence take advantage of while they are there? 

I’ve always been impressed with how well Florence wears its extraordinary history—so many remarkable figures and movements and moments, most superbly preserved—while remaining a dynamic modern ecosystem that is a global leader in sustainability and has developed a thriving start-up culture.

Students can exercise their passion in virtually any direction and take advantage of so much: superb dining, from haute cuisine to street food; natural beauty in an urban setting; engagement with local public service organizations; and cultural treasures both ancient and newly imagined. And of course there are architectural gems everywhere you wander. 

Many NYU Florence students find themselves spending fewer weekends city-hopping and more immersed in their fascinating immediate surroundings, which speaks to the power of the experience they have. 

Written by Kristin Maffei