A Human of Edinburgh

A small leather-bound journal encapsulates some of the wisdom Jake Berton (Col ’24) gained while studying abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland, as a third-year student in the spring of 2023. He kept it with him all the time, jotting down observations about his surroundings, often while he walked or sat in the city’s large public parks. “I could live outside the U.S. and not feel out of touch politically, socially, or culturally,” reads one of the takeaways he noted in a long list at the back of the book. Another says, “I’ve come into my own as a person here.”

Jake Berton enjoying a spring day on Grounds during his final semester.

Originally from Quakertown, Pennsylvania, Berton came to UVA knowing he wanted to study overseas, and UVA’s robust programs were among the reasons he chose to become a Hoo. Working with education abroad advisors in the International Studies Office, he identified Edinburgh as his destination of choice. The Susan B. and Lee Piepho International Scholarship Fund helped make his semester overseas a reality.

The Piepho Scholarship supports undergraduate students interested in studying abroad, and—like all gifts made to establish a scholarship endowment—the Piephos’ gift has been invested for long-term growth, so generated earnings can support future students like Jake Berton. Susan Brand Piepho (Grad Arts & Sciences ’70) and the late Lee Piepho (Grad Arts & Sciences ’72) met as rising third-year students in 1962 on a 10-day trip across the north Atlantic as they each embarked on travels around Europe. They were married after graduation and spent their lives exploring the world together. Berton was able to meet Sue Piepho after he returned from his own travels, and he expressed his gratitude for the couple’s vision in creating 
the scholarship.

“Anything that involves actively trying to sustain connection means a lot to me,” he said. “We need more of that in the world. It might be small in the grand scheme of things, but it’s certainly not small to the people who benefit. I’m incredibly thankful for the experiences that I had as a result of the scholarship. I’m a romantic at heart and would have loved to hear even more tales of their travels.”

Berton’s own explorations of the world are grounded in open-minded curiosity and a commitment to cultivating human relationships. “The framing that I use when I go through life is connection—wanting to bring people together, wanting to alleviate loneliness,” he said. He’s a co-president of Humans of UVA, a student group whose mission is to explore UVA’s community one story at a time; members interview strangers on Grounds at random, and their unique stories and a photographic portrait are then posted on the group’s website and shared on social media.

“You begin to see these common threads among people,” Berton explained, “and it really lends itself to thinking about some broader shared humanity and imagining a world where all the people in a hypothetical world could be friends and know each other.”

This vision contributed to Berton’s contentment in navigating Edinburgh on his own, meeting new people, and learning in a new environment. “I did a lot of solo traveling when I was there, including just walking around and doing things around the city by myself,” he said. “I was physically alone, but I never felt alone. I always felt in touch or connected with the people around me. And those were some of the moments I felt most at peace with myself, with my environment, with the way I was operating in the world. It was really the happiest time of my life.”  

An American Studies major, Berton’s coursework abroad and experiences in Edinburgh directly related to his desire to become a history teacher—though this career trajectory was set in motion long before that by a high school history teacher who brought the subject alive for his students, making history feel grounded through great storytelling. “I knew right then that was what I wanted to do,” Berton said. “It’s definitely been the driving force of my life.” Directly enrolling in the University of Edinburgh, he chose courses that piqued his interest—including Sociology of Illicit Markets and Criminal Organizations. He found that one to be particularly compelling after taking a class at UVA on the popular television series “Breaking Bad” and co-designing a follow-up class on the show’s spinoff, “Better Call Saul,” with William Little, associate professor of media studies.

Left: Now an alumnus, Jake Berton is enrolled in the one-year Master of Teaching program in UVA’s School of Education and Human Development, with the goal of becoming a social studies teacher. Middle: The leather-bound journal where Jake Berton recorded his experiences studying abroad in Scotland. Right: The view looking down Princes Street in Edinburgh’s city center.

He also had a spot of good luck on that thematic front, running into “Breaking Bad” actor Dean Norris in Edinburgh on the way to a coffee shop after visiting the National Museum of Scotland. “I was the most starstruck I’ve ever been in my life,” he grinned, holding up the photo he snapped on his phone. “And all the ideas I learned about on my trip are still showing up in my classes right now, which is great. That’s what college is for!” 

Despite his focus on studying and teaching history, Berton’s time in Edinburgh also gave him a glimpse of what life after graduation might look like. “It felt like a preview of my twenties—like I was jumping ahead in my life in a really productive way. It was life changing.”