The Compass Center

by Rachael Jacobs 

Over this past semester I had an internship with Catholic Charities teaching English to refugees. For this blog post I have decided to talk about the part of my experience that was both the most rewarding and the most challenging. About halfway through the semester, as I wrote one of my journal reflections about my time at work so far, I thought that my biggest accomplishment was, both at that time and what I thought would continue to be, watching the academic growth of my students. I could not have been more wrong. While being able to watch my students become more fluent was rewarding, it was nowhere near as rewarding as noticing the differences in the way my students looked at me day to day. It was nowhere near as rewarding as picking up on the ways in which our conversations about life outside of class evolved day to day. It can be hard for me to make connections like this with people within my own comfort zone, let alone those from another culture and language. But the barrier that I thought would be ever-present between us got knocked down after the first day. That is what was so rewarding for me: not only being able to impact their lives outside of class time, but the ways in which they impacted my life as well. The largest lesson that I learned from this was how similar we all really are. All of us want to be loved and accepted, no matter where we come from, the color of our skin, or what language we speak. This is not to disregard the differences that exist, however – those are just as important. It is through these differences that we are able to learn more about the world and the ultimate experience that everyone both shares and holds uniquely at the same time. In this way I was successful and in this way my experience was the most memorable.

 

 

by Julia Bluhm

My communications internship at the CFV this semester not only helped me build my communications skills, but it helped me better understand my own sense of vocation and what kind of career I’m interested in.

Aside from gaining tons of experience in graphic design, social media marketing, and making continuous social media campaigns, I also learned a lot about interfaith cooperation. In preparing for the film discussion I hosted for The Heart of Nuba, I researched about conflicts in Sudan and had the opportunity to meet with Mastora Bakhiet, the director of the Darfur Women Network. It was eye-opening to hear more about life in Sudan from Mastora, a Sudanese Muslim woman, and to hear about all the struggles the Darfur people have been through. While we talked over pizza, I offered to help her with a video she was making. A week later, I was sitting in her living room and transcribing Arabic translations for the video. I know that if I hadn’t been an intern at the CFV, I probably would not have been so inspired to research conflicts in Sudan, and I probably never would have ended up in the living room of a woman who’s culture and background is so different from mine. I am extremely grateful that I did though, because this is just one example of how my internship helped me become a more open and educated person.  Interfaith and cross-cultural conversations can be slightly uncomfortable at first, but they are essential. I have put myself out of my comfort zone several times through my internship at the CFV, and every time I felt grateful afterwards for the experience. I want to keep doing this as a part of my future career in the non-profit sector.

Luckily, I have been given the opportunity to return in the fall as the CFV’s communications coordinator, so I will be able to stay involved. I look forward to continuing some of the social media campaigns I have started, such as featuring student leader profiles on Instagram and making our social media more photo-based. I also look forward to continuing to expand my interfaith understanding and to be as involved in CFV programs as I can.