Action-Research Youth Internship
A year-long internship where young people tutor, mentor, and study together as they contribute to the betterment of their community.
About the Internship Program
Our community needs a growing body of young people who can contribute to the material and spiritual progress of our neighborhoods, both through professions and voluntary engagement with civil society. The capacities developed by our programs aspire to equip a new generation of youth to read social reality and develop meaningful processes and initiatives of social action. This growing cadre of human resources will need to be able to analyze the social forces at work in society with a coherent conceptual framework and generate new ways of thinking about social change in light of relevant scientific and spiritual knowledge.
Tutoring
Each intern is responsible for providing one-on-one academic tutoring for two middle schoolers each week for one hour. Academic tutoring focuses on helping middle school students in library and numeracy. Using the material from the Junior Youth Empowerment Program, interns help junior youth improve their language capabilities. Language tutoring focuses on four elements: pronunciation, fluidity, vocabulary and reading comprehension. Numeracy focuses on helping the middle school students strengthen basic math skills including multiplication and division, addition and subtraction, fractions and basic algebra using flashcards and worksheets.
Mentorship
Each intern is connected to an older mentor who consults with them about every aspect of their life. Mentors work with the youth to help them reflect on their lives. They consult with the youth about everything they are doing – service, tutoring, where to go to school, what courses to take, decisions about how they’re spending their time and dimensions of their relationships with their family. They explore the value of the things the youth are doing with their time. Mentoring sessions often last between 90 minutes and two hours. Having a mentor provides an opportunity for reflection and to have a trusted friend to turn to with challenges and to identify ways of overcoming challenges as they arise.
Scholarship
In order to support their intellectual development, each intern receives a financial scholarship as part of their internship. For high school students, they receive a their scholarship at the end of senior year to use for their academic advancement.
Study of the Preparation for Social Action materials
Interns participate in training sessions using the Preparation for Social Action (PSA) educational materials developed by La Fundación para la Aplicación y Enseñanza de las Ciencias (FUNDAEC), drawing on decades of community‑based action research in Colombia.
These materials help youth develop the knowledge, habits, and skills needed to promote the wellbeing of their communities. Through cycles of study, discussion, and application, interns learn to think systematically, analyze social conditions, and approach community challenges with clarity and purpose.
Apply for the Internship
Complete the form below, or open it in a new tab. Prefer to talk first? Reach us at info@striveyouth.us or (617) 410-6419.
Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom.