UEP & UEPI Summer Internship Program

PROGRAMS 

• Affordable Housing, Community Development, and Environmental Justice
  Interns will work with professional staff on a variety of projects dealing with housing development, housing policy, housing advocacy, environmental justice, and community-based approaches to climate change, policy, and planning.
   
• Food Studies and Urban Agriculture
  Interns will participate in a 2-week orientation course to learn about urban agriculture basics and food justice in Los Angeles that includes classroom activities as well as a series of experiential field trips where students engage in hands-on learning activities, and will then be placed at one of the urban agriculture organizations for an 8-week internship. Students will work alongside urban farmers and gain experience in urban food production methods, community engagement and workshops, as well as marketing, sales, and food assistance acceptance. ​​​​
   

• Public Health 
  Interns will be placed with frontline public health organizations and clinics that serve vulnerable populations in Los Angeles. Students will work with staff from partner sites on projects related to the mission and goals of the organization. Students may work on projects related to women’s health, health education, nutrition and physical activity, healthcare access, and/or food assistance program enrollment.

• Immigration Rights and Social Justice
  After a 2-day orientation/workshop to working with immigrant populations and community-based partner organizations, interns will be placed in an immigration-focused partner organization in Los Angeles for 8 weeks. During those 8 weeks, interns will work with staff to address matters such as legal immigrant rights, education, housing, work/employment, family, and health.  The particular work will depend on the mission of the partner organization. 

The Occidental students selected for this internship will be paid a $6,300 study grant, will be provided with room and board on campus [based on income, but with a maximum payment of $150 (tbc) per week for the summer], and will work full-time for a community-based non-profit organization in Los Angeles. Additional funds for travel expenses may also be available. The number of internship slots will depend on the level of funding the program can raise.

Interns will be required to:

• Work full-time for 10 weeks from May 29, 2024 to August 2, 2024
• Present at the URC Summer Research Program Conference on July 31, 2024
• Participate in weekly seminars with faculty mentors and other interns to discuss assigned readings and reflect on the internship experience
• Keep a journal
• Write a final paper

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PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY

Open to all majors! All current students returning in the Fall semester are eligible to apply. Past recipients may apply to other program areas. Students graduating in May 2024 are not eligible. 

Affordable Housing
Must be interested in issues of affordable housing, homelessness, community development, improvement of conditions in low-income neighborhoods, environmental justice, and climate justice.

Possible Organizations:

• Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (https://www.acceaction.org) 
• Asian Pacific Islander Forward Movmement (https://www.apifm.org/)
• Coalition for Economic Survival (http://www.cesinaction.org/)
• East Los Angeles Community Corporation (www.elacc.org)
• East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice (eycej.org)
• Esperanza Community Housing (www.esperanzacommunityhousing.org)
• LA Community Action Network (cangress.org)
• LA Voice (www.lavoice.org)
• LINC Housing Corporation (www.linchousing.org)
• Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy (www.laane.org)
• Neighborhood Housing Services (www.nhslacounty.org)
• Nikkei Progressives (www.nikkeiprogressives.org)
• Pacoima Beautiful (www.pacoimabeautiful.org)
• Southern California Association of Non-Profit Housing (www.scanph.org)
• Strategic Action for a Just Economy (saje.net)
• Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (http://scopela.org/)

Food Studies and Urban Agriculture
Must be interested in food systems and urban agriculture production and how urban agriculture can address issues of food access, food security, and diet-related diseases.

Possible Organizations:

• Alma Backyard Farms
• Avenue 33 Farm
• Black Thumb Farm
• Community Services Unlimited (CSU) 
• Crop Swap LA
• Uncommon Good
• The Urban Homestead

Public Health  
Must be interested in public health and have completed PUBH 203 Introduction to Public Health; or DWA 248 or PUBH 248 Global Public Health before the start of the summer internship program.

Possible Organizations:

• Saban Community Clinic (www.sabancommunityclinic.org)
• SEE-LA (https://seela.org/)
• Every Woman Counts (LA County) (www.dhcs.ca.gov/services/Cancer/ewc/Pages/default.aspx)
• Foothill Unity Center Client Services Department (www.foothillunitycenter.org)
• Koreatown Youth and Community Center (www.kyccla.org)
• New Familia Health Support Services (www.newfamilia.org)
• Meet Each Need with Dignity (www.mendpoverty.org)

Immigrant Rights and Social Justice
Must be interested in legal immigrant rights, education, housing, work/employment, family, and health.

Possible Organizations:

• American Civil Liberties Union—Southern California (ACLUSOCAL)- ( https://www.aclusocal.org/ )
• Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC) - (https://antirecidivism.org/)
• Asian Americans Advancing Justice-LA- ( http://advancingjustice-la.org/ )
• Central American Resource Center (CARECEN)- (http://www.carecen-la.org/legal_services )
• Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA)- (http://www.chirla.org/ )
• Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC)- (https://www.ilrc.org/ )
• Interfaith Refugee & Immigration Service (IRIS) - (https://www.iris-la.org/)
• International Rescue Committee (IRC)- ( https://www.rescue.org/united-states/los-angeles-ca )
• Korean Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA)- https://kiwa.org/intern-volunteer
• National Immigration Law Center (NILC): ( https://www.nilc.org/ )
• Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA)- (https://lafla.org/about-us/locations/ )
• Mexican American Legal Defense Fund (MALDEF)- ( https://www.maldef.org/ )
• Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) - (https://www.mpac.org/)
• Immigration Center for Women and Children (ICWC)- ( http://icwclaw.org/ )
• Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice- (https://www.laclj.org/immigration/)
• Kids in Need of Defense (KIND)- (https://supportkind.org/)
• LACBA Immigration Legal Assistance Project- ( https://www.lacba.org/give-back/immigration-legal-assistance-projec)

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HOW TO APPLY - Deadline is in 2025, TBD

Complete the online application form and upload your documents by TBD

We'll need the following information: 

1. Your name, Oxy ID#, major, class (frosh, sophomore, junior), GPA, name of a faculty member who can serve as a reference, your method of transportation for the summer (personal vehicle, public transit, ride-share, or carpool), and whether you will need campus housing during the 10-week program;
2. Identify the program you are applying for and list the three organizations that interest you the most. Note: You may apply to more than one program but must submit a separate application for each; 
3. A 250-500 word statement (PDF or MS Word) explaining why you are interested in the program you are applying for, what skills will you bring (e.g. fluent in Spanish, proficient in Photoshop, etc), and what do you hope to learn at the internship site; share your future educational and professional plans and how this internship can help to support these plans. Also include information about any other related internship or volunteer experiences;
4. Your resume (PDF or MS Word); and
5. Your Oxy transcript (unofficial is acceptable).