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Sarah Lawrence College’s Community Leadership Intern Program, better known as CLIP, turns 10 this year. For the past decade, CLIP has provided rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors with a unique opportunity to gain firsthand experience in community-based organizations while making a positive impact in the City of Yonkers and neighboring communities in Westchester County.
“CLIP brings about true collaboration and partnership with community-based organizations in Yonkers and Westchester County,” says Nelson Rodriguez, Director of Community Partnerships and Engagement. “This program gives Sarah Lawrence College students an opportunity to get hands-on experience in community organizing.”
Since its inception, CLIP has been a valuable program for Sarah Lawrence students, offering them an inside look at the operations of nonprofit organizations. “Since 2021, Yonkers Public Library has hosted interns from Sarah Lawrence. This internship gives students the opportunity to manage projects, perform archival work, and experience working in a library and doing self-directed projects. Working in the library gives young people interested in archives and/or librarianship the chance to experience this type of work, and we in the Library are thrilled that we've been able to hire these former interns as part- and full-time staff members,” said Mary Robison, Head of Reference and Adult Services at the Yonkers Public Library.
The program runs for 10 weeks during the summer, with participants working 30 hours per week. In addition to gaining practical experience, interns receive a living stipend, bus passes for transportation to community sites, and on-campus housing. CLIP participants are expected to fully immerse themselves in the program, attending a day-long orientation session and weekly leadership seminars. These seminars offer a rich learning experience through alumni career panels, workshops, guest faculty lectures, discussions with Yonkers community leaders, films, readings, and engaging conversations about community-based work.
“For me, in my first year at SLC, CLIP has been one of our cornerstone programs and one I particularly look forward to organizing,” continued Rodriguez.
This summer, the program is proudly partnering with several community-based organizations, including Arts Westchester, Groundwork Hudson Valley, Hearts & Homes for Refugees, Hudson River Museum, Neighbors Link, Untermeyer Gardens Conservancy, Wartburg Adult Care Community, Westhab, WJCS Center Lane, Yonkers Arts, Yonkers Public Library, and Sarah Lawrence’s own Center for the Urban River at Beczak (CURB).
“Sarah Lawrence students have been wonderful volunteers, working with preschool-aged children in our Adelante Juntos (Parent-Child Together) program,” said Ali Leisawitz, Volunteer Coordinator at Neighbors Link. “This is our first year hosting a CLIP intern. They have been assisting us across all departments in all three of our centers and are a valuable part of our team, helping us with facilitating workshops, creating communications materials, data entry, working with children of all ages, helping with operations, and designing presentations. They are very eager to help and learn and it’s been a pleasure to work with them.”
Let's meet some of this year's CLIP participants:
Merrit Snider, a rising junior from Atlanta, Georgia, is studying Jewish/Religious Studies. Snider is working at the Wartburg Adult Care Community in Mount Vernon, New York, and is excited to learn about the functional side of the organization. With a passion for working with people and taking care of them, Merrit sees the internship as an opportunity to make a difference in the community, and hopes to attend rabbinical school in the future.
Emily Orr, a senior slated to graduate in December 2023, is studying Environmental Studies and English Literature. Orr will be working at the Sarah Lawrence College Center for the Urban River at Beczak (CURB) and is interested in educational programming at CURB, aiming to engage students with the environment and ecology of the Hudson River through immersive activities. Orr sees her internship as a stepping stone toward her goal of making environmental and climate change science more accessible and interdisciplinary.
Aubrey Baker, a senior from Newport, Rhode Island, has a deep passion for environmental science and creative writing. Drawn to the nonprofit community aspect and sustainability focus of Groundwork Hudson Valley, she saw her internship as an opportunity to form connections and explore hydroponics.
Teddy Heil, a rising junior, has a strong interest in museum work, specifically curatorial roles. Excited to work directly with a museum through CLIP, Teddy looks forward to gaining hands-on experience in the field and engaging with the Yonkers/Hudson Valley community. As a student editor and member of various student publications, he brings his creative talents to his internship and anticipates learning from the diverse experiences of others.
Laurel Collins, a rising sophomore from Grand Junction, Colorado, is passionate about political science, history, and music. She joined the Yonkers Public Library to learn how libraries benefit communities and to deepen her understanding of archival research. With a career goal of becoming a political science professor, she recognizes the value of gaining knowledge and skills through diverse experiences.
Serena Singh, a program assistant for CLIP, is a recent Sarah Lawrence graduate who studied psychology, film, and politics. With a desire to pursue socially impactful projects and social entrepreneurship, Singh was excited about engaging with community leaders, organizing activities, and implementing workshops. Her interdisciplinary background made the varied tasks of the program appealing, and she saw it as an opportunity to build essential skills for her future work.
Annabelle Didier, a rising senior and first-year graduate student in the College’s five-year program in the Art of Teaching, aims to work with children and explore therapeutic routes like Children's Art Therapy.
As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, Annabelle was drawn to the WJCS Center Lane for LGBTQ+ Youth, where she can be a positive role model and provide hope to young queer individuals. She believes that each experience, including this internship, will contribute to her personal and professional growth.
Esther Eisenberg-Noppe, a rising senior from Seattle, Washington, has a passion for social justice and community organizing. Planning to become a social worker, Eisenberg-Noppe recognizes the importance of gaining work experience and developing skills for her future career and sees this internship as an opportunity to learn more about immigrant experiences and build connections with underrepresented communities.