Jesse Kedy, '07, Brings an International Perspective to Classroom, Work

Jesse Kedy, ’07, hardly fit the profile of a typical freshman student when he arrived on campus for freshman orientation in the fall of 2003. Having spent the first three years following his graduation from a Tel Aviv high school in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF), followed by a 10-month period devoted to a mixture of work and travel, Kedy entered college with a level of maturity and portfolio of life experiences unmatched by most other freshmen.  

Born in a London suburb to a British mother and Israeli father, at the age of 18 months Kedy moved with his family to Tel Aviv, Israel, where his father purchased and operated a popular downtown bar. When he was six, his family moved again, this time to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where he attended elementary school. 

But his parents divorced, and at age 12 Kedy returned to Israel with his father, who by then was working as a full-time artist. And like most Israeli teens, he entered the IDF shortly after his high school graduation. 

Military service is mandatory for most young Israeli citizens, Kedy explained, but because of his dual British-Israeli citizenship, he could have avoided military service by leaving the country. “I chose to stay,” Kedy said, “because I thought ideologically that it is very significant to defend a country.”  

Kedy described his three years in the infantry division of the IDF as a combination of intense training and active-duty service which included guarding and patrolling Palestinian cities. He specialized in sharpshooting and driving armored personnel carriers. Toward the end of his service, he achieved the rank of infantry first sergeant and assumed responsibility for supervising the daily activities of 192 infantry recruits.  

“We had plenty to deal with,” Kedy said, “and not everyone made it. It’s always healthy to feel a little scared, but you can’t afford to be scared to the point of inaction. You need to be aware of your surroundings at all times, and you often have to make decisions with very little deliberation time.”  

Kedy completed his military service in October 2002 and immediately hopped a plane to Fiji where he served as a volunteer staffing a convention led by internationally renowned personal-growth trainer Tony Robbins. Kedy’s mother, a long-time enthusiast of personal-growth and motivational training, had introduced Kedy to Robbins in 1997 when Kedy attended his first Robbins seminar at age 16. 

Not only does he come away from a Robbins seminar feeling inspired, Kedy said, but he also benefits from meeting and forming friendships with members of the diverse international community who typically attend and volunteer at such events. 

Kedy traveled to the United States following his three-week stint in Fiji and embarked on a journey of exploration. He purchased a jeep in San Diego, Calif., and zigzagged his way across the country, arriving in Cocoa Beach, Fla., six weeks later. Stops along the way included Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Salt Lake City, Yellowstone and Boulder, Colo. 

Next he turned his attention to the college search. Kedy wanted to attend a competitive, small, private, East Coast liberal arts college with a strong business program, he said. After visiting the University of Richmond campus, he knew he had found the right college. And, as it turned out, the University of Richmond had found the right student.  

Midway through the first semester of Kedy’s freshman year, a resident assistant position in Gray Court, the dormitory where Kedy lived, opened up unexpectedly. Assistant Dean of Residence Life Patrick Benner was scrambling to find an upperclassman to fill the position when area coordinator Graham Eng-Wilmot suggested he consider hiring Kedy.  

“We knew he was different, much more mature [than other freshmen],” Benner said. “And Graham told us that he was a really great guy and everyone got along with him.” So Benner took the unusual step of hiring a freshman as a resident assistant responsible for supervising a freshman hall. 

Kedy smiled when he recalled how the other freshmen responded to him as a resident assistant: “Sometimes by accident they would call me sir. One time I told a freshman he didn’t have to call me sir, and he said, ‘Sorry, sir!’” Whether it’s his calm, confident demeanor, his imposing 6’4” frame or his dark, inquisitive eyes, Kedy inspires this type of respect.  

He has certainly demonstrated leadership throughout his four years at the University of Richmond by serving as a resident assistant, a head resident, a peer mentor to international students and ambassador coordinator for the Office of International Education and vice president of public relations for the Jepson Student Government Association.  

In addition to his leadership competencies, Kedy, like other international students, brings a different perspective to the classroom. International degree-seeking and exchange students comprise 5 percent of the University’s undergraduate population, according to Krittika Onsanit of the Office of International Education. But international students enrich the diversity of discourse at the University to a far greater degree than their numbers would indicate.  

Joanne Ciulla reflected on her experience having Kedy as a student in Leadership in International Contexts last spring: “Foreign students play a very important role in the Leadership in International Contexts course. Jesse is an excellent student who offered a unique perspective on other countries and leaders in the world.”

As he looks ahead to his future post-graduation, Kedy, a double major in leadership studies and business administration, with concentrations in international business and marketing, hopes he will be able to use his leadership abilities and his international background to his advantage. He envisions himself working in a fast-paced, challenging environment for a small to midsize U.S. organization where he can make a significant impact.  

Securing a position with a U.S. organization when you’re not a U.S. citizen can prove difficult, however, especially when applying for positions with smaller firms. To work in the United States, Kedy needs an organization to agree to sponsor him so that he can apply for an H-1B work visa. Most small and midsize organizations are not accustomed to hiring non-nationals and usually avoid immigration issues, Kedy said. 

“I find it interesting that while many organizations claim to value diversity, relatively few embrace and leverage true diversity in the workforce.” Kedy said. “If you think about it, it’s a major source of competitive advantage to the Goldman Sachs’s of the world. I don’t think that any organization that takes itself seriously can afford to remain isolated from global perspectives any longer.”  

Despite the hurdles he faces, Kedy remains optimistic about finding the kind of position he wants with a U.S. firm. “Right now I am just focused on the next part of my journey,” Kedy said.