Because it is operated by a school district--the largest in the country--New York City's program can guarantee a job for all participants, as it did for 1700 participants in last year's June program.
Apart from his prominent publications in several different fields, what distinguishes Lu from most of his scientific peers is the unpretentious joy he takes in science.
"You have to fill in details that a lot of even experts don't think about on a daily basis, and you're pulling together expertise from a number of labs and publications to try and create one unique comprehensive figure." -Graham Johnson
If history shows anything, it's that taking money away from people who have it and giving it to people who don't is a very difficult thing to do, whether it's scientists or serfs, postdocs or the poor.