Some of Andy Ridgway’s earliest memories are of traveling around the U.S. with his family. And when, as a teenager, he got his first taste of overseas travel, he was instantly hooked for good. While he’s sure he could happily spend a lifetime or two exploring the Mediterranean region, some of his favorite destinations remain here on domestic soil. And though he’d been plying his marketing trade in other industries for a while, at some point it became apparent that helping others fulfill their passion for travel, which he does as Criterion’s Marketing Manager, is where his heart truly lies.

Bridget spent most of her childhood overseas in Latin America and the Middle East. She grew up in a family of international educators and developed a deep love of travel at a very young age. She worked at her alma mater, the University of Portland, for over a decade in marketing and communications before setting her sights on educational affinity travel. Her commitment to producing marketing assets that effectively showcase Criterion Travel excursions is a source of pride and joy! During her down time, she enjoys tennis, skiing, movies, and exploring the Pacific Northwest.

Francesca was born and raised in Como, Italy and grew up developing a vocation for foreign language studies and travel at the University of Milano. Her first memories traveling with her parents include skiing at the Dolomites, snorkeling in the Red Sea, and eating macarons in Paris. She spent her third year of university in Vienna, Austria as an Erasmus student and she also joined a Spanish language study program in Valencia, Spain. Before she moved to the United States in 2018, she mainly built her professional background in the hotel industry and loved getting to know guests from every corner of the world. Now, with her husband, she always looks forward to planning the next trip or seeking the next food experience in the Portland area. Top three travel adventures in her bucket list: Walking the Camino de Santiago, gazing the Northern Lights from a glass igloo in Finland, and admiring the hot-air balloons at sunrise in Cappadocia.

As Jason Graham traveled to Cordoba, Argentina, to start his year as a high school exchange student, he sat next to a woman who was returning from the Australian Outback. She advised him, “If you’re not interested, you’re not interesting!” These words started Jason on a path of exploration throughout the Americas and all over the world. He has studied, worked, and lived in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Costa Rica. Over the past 12 years, he has developed, managed, and led scores of trips in the nonprofit educational niche of the travel industry. Most recently he was responsible for a travel series involving several former world leaders.

John Babin, born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, has been an ardent world traveler since participating in an educational tour of Europe his senior year of high school. Inspired by this eye-opening experience, John further explored his budding passion for international educational travel by studying abroad in the historic city of Prague, Czech Republic. Before joining the Passenger Services team at Criterion Travel, John was an advisor to international students from over 30 countries at his alma mater, Notre Dame de Namur University. John’s favorite travel destinations include the Czech Republic, New Zealand, and Hong Kong, and he is thrilled to be part of an organization that designs and facilitates exceptional educational travel experiences.

After emerging from UCLA’s Graduate School of Management, Kathie Harvey sprinted up the corporate ladder until she realized that marketing door hardware (albeit top-quality door hardware) did not fulfillment bring. Lonely Planet Guide in hand, she wandered the world for a year, diving with hammerheads, dancing with Australian opal miners, feeding fish entrails to monitor lizards with Tioman Islanders, and trekking over prayer flag–festooned mountain passes. Thus began her fascination with unique destinations and people-to-people experiences, along with a passion for assisting others as they venture forth to explore, which she does as part of the team at Criterion.