This summer, winners of the Bowdoin Career Planning Center's funded internships and the Thomas McKinley Grant will pursue opportunities outside the sphere of their usual academic learning at Bowdoin.
RAMAA CHITALE '09
For Ramaa Chitale '09, going to Egypt this summer is more than an opportunity to spend time abroad and explore a different culture.
Chitale received one of 12 Preston Public Interest Career Fund grants awarded to students through the Career Planning Center (CPC). With this grant, she will be able to work for ProLiteracy, a non-profit organization committed to improving quality of life by increasing literacy.
The Preston Fund offers a $4000 stipend to students working with the underserved or disadvantaged and is open to first years through juniors.
"The idea is to allow students to be able to take internships that they would normally not be able to be paid for," said head of the selection committee for CPC funded grants Dighton Spooner.
Chitale will spend two months in Al Minya, a district south of Cairo, teaching English and working on fundraising and financial stability through ProLiteracy. Chitale said that she would not have been able to go without funding.
"I would like to experience another culture that I don't know about or hear about," said Chitale, who is also looking forward to expanding her Arabic. She currently takes classes on campus from Jamil Wyne '08.
Chitale went to Egypt in high school on a school trip, but anticipates that the flavor of this summer will be different. "I will probably see things that are shocking. It's important to see them to know that they are out there" and why we are working to make those problems better, said Chitale.
KATHLEEN LEWIS '10
Kathleen Lewis '10 found an organization that united all of her interests in Portland. A Company of Girls is a non-profit organization that seeks to empower at-risk girls through the arts.
Lewis described the organization as a place where girls "can use creativity in positive ways that empower them."
"I knew I wanted an internship with theater and I knew I wouldn't be able to get paid," said Lewis. Funding from the Preston Fund made Lewis's plans possible.
Lewis will be working with theater and combining her interest in women's studies, non-profits, and the arts.
"It's absolutely perfect," she said.
Since it is a small organization, Lewis will be able to have a lot of responsibility fundraising, grant searching, grant writing, and working directly with participants.
"That's the most important to me. With any volunteer work, you want to be involved with people," said Lewis.
Spooner said that when reviewing applications for funding, the committee looks to make sure that the proposed internship aligns with the student's needs and that the student will be given a lot of responsibility. "[Funding] exists for students to learn about a field and make a real contribution," said Spooner.
The CPC awards a number of other grants that make it possible for students to pursue unpaid internships. The Nikuadse-Matthews Summer Fellowship, open to first years, sophomores, and juniors, also funds one to two students working through an organization for the underprivileged and awards up to $4000.
In conjunction with the Community Service Resource Center, the CPC awards the Community Matters in Maine Fellowship/Psi Upsilon and Logan Environmental Fellows and the Community Matters in Maine Fellowship/Community Action Fellows to a total of 11 to 12 students working in Maine for a non-profit for environmental or community service, respectively.
MATT CARPENTER '10
Matt Carpenter '10 was encouraged to apply for a grant by his future employer, the State Department.
"The internship is in Washington D.C. and it's unpaid," said Carpernter. "The only way to make it feasible was with a grant from school."
Carpenter received a grant from the Robert S. Goodfriend Summer Internship Fund. The Goodfriend Fund focuses on business and awards up to $5000 to two first years or sophomores.
Carpenter will be working in the Office of Commercial and Business Affairs within the Bureau of Economics.
Carpenter described the office as "marrying the diplomacy of the State Department with the Chamber of Commerce." The office works to support U.S. businesses working abroad in trade and investment.
As a possible government or economics major, Carpenter said he sees the Office of Commercial and Business Affairs as a way to combine international diplomacy and an economic perspective.
In the application process for funding, students work with the organization they want to intern for to define the importance of the internship, how it fits into an academic or career plan, and if there might be long-term career implications, according to Spooner.
Spooner stressed that the selection committee looks for proposals that are refined to maximize the benefit to the student and the organization for which he or she will be interning.
"[We are] looking for an experience that fits what the student defines as their interests and needs," said Spooner.
AISHA WOODWARD '08
ANNA KARASS '08
StEVEN BARTUS '08
An organization in its second year, Davis Projects for Peace was funded by Kathryn Davis on her 100th birthday to give 100 student projects $10,000 each.
Recipients Steven Bartus '08, Anna Karass '08, and Aisha Woodward '08 completed an internal review process and were selected to continue to compete for the Davis Projects through the Davis United World College Scholars Program of which Bowdoin is a member.
"It's purposefully vague," said Woodward of the aim of the projects, noting that peace can come about in many ways.
"Some are very practical and some are more esoteric," said Bartus, noting that the wide variety of projects include anything from teaching for one week to organizing a soccer tournament for kids.
Bartus, Karass, and Woodward will be uniting their skills and interests to film a documentary about life in Ghana through the Maine Ghana Youth Network (MGYN).
MGYN gives the children of Kissehman a place to explore academic and extracurricular activities in a safe and supportive environment. The documentary will seek to have participants describe the program and how it impacted their life.
Bartus said that the group plans to show their completed documentary to Bowdoin and the surrounding community and also as a possible fundraising tool for MGYN.
The project "blended our interests and skill sets," said Bartus. All three seniors are government majors with an interest in Africa and the developing world. Woodward has also traveled to Ghana before. "I have a personal connection and would love to go back," she said.
Bartus said he doesn't have any expectations of what the documentary will be like.
"We don't know what we're going to get. It's the process of engaging with people," said Bartus of the project. "We're trying to understand a people and their history."
FATOUMATTA KUNJO '10
In its broad community service focus, Fatoumatta Kunjo '10 found the Thomas A. McKinley '06 Grant to be the right fit for her needs.
After working with the Maine Ghana Youth Network in Maine and founding the Africa Alliance on campus, Kunjo will travel to Ghana this summer through the McKinley Grant.
The Thomas A. McKinley '06 Grant, awarded by a committee outside of the College on April 15, allows students to design an opportunity for entrepreneurial experience or service internationally or domestically and awards up to $5000. The Thomas A. McKinley Grant is only open to sophomores.
MGYN started through the connection between Bates graduate Ian Jones and Kissehman resident Mollishmael Kwame Gabah. It has since expanded to include a cultural exchange between the U.S. location in Ellsworth, Maine. and the Africa location in Accra, Ghana.
Kunjo will be volunteering for the organization that gives educational support to students in Kissehman. Kunjo said she was told to be ready for anything, including making breakfast, walking students to school, and helping them with homework.
MGYN also sponsors field trips and organizes athletic and artistic opportunities as well as education in agriculture and technology.
"Every time I go, everywhere I go, I'm surprised," said Kunjo. "I gain so much that I never imagined."
The CPC holds informational session on funding for unpaid internships in November, and according to Spooner, may start to do so sooner next fall. Applications for funding are due in February.