2010 Van Amson Fellow: World Saavy, Media and Arts Program
Samiha Rahman
CC, 2012
2010 Van Amson Fellow: World Saavy, Media and Arts Program
As the Global Youth Media and Arts Program (MAP) intern at World Savvy in New York City from January 2010 to July 2010, I was involved with the upkeep, execution, and assessment of the “Immigration + Identity” theme, as well as the preparation for the Sustainable Communities theme. I researched and created field trip lesson plans, aligned curricula to state and nationwide standards, assessed the 2009-2010 MAP, identified collaborative opportunities with businesses and organizations for the MAP Festival and field trips, drafted invitations for and maintained communications with government officials for the MAP Festival, identified and organized media contacts, helped facilitate workshops and field trips with youth, and assisted with general administrative tasks. The internship provided a multi-faceted exposure to the various aspects of non-profit management and development, and renewed my commitment to developing innovative ways to engage, educate, and empower young people.
The most valuable and enjoyable aspect of the internship was the close working relationship with Carissa, the MAP Program Manager. She encouraged me to take initiative on projects that I demonstrated passion about, such as recruiting volunteers and identifying music references for hip-hop workshops at a Bronx middle school, or researching content for an editorial connecting Arizona’s immigration legislation and the Gulf Oil spill to the MAP program. Rather than stating specific instructions, Carissa encouraged creativity with projects; I conceived and created original field trips such as the Sustainable Greenwich Village walking tour. Through these assignments, I improved my ability to work independently, managed serious responsibility, and gained a strong sense of accountability and personal investment in the organization.
While it was certainly helpful to be involved with a wide range of projects over the course of the internship, it would perhaps have been rewarding to work more closely with the fellow interns. There were few opportunities for interaction amongst the interns. Because of conflicting schedules and the Google document system that identified several concurrent projects, each intern worked on separate tasks and thus seldom needed to solicit another intern for assistance or advice. A collaborative system might have yielded valuable educational opportunities and exchange of ideas.
The internship was truly memorable and rewarding. To work with such a talented and diverse group of youth, to witness their sense of accomplishment at the MAP Festival, and then to bear these experiences in mind when helping develop programming and resources for the Sustainable Communities theme created a powerful feedback loop that constantly validated both my work and enthusiasm for World Savvy’s mission.
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