Introductions: New Interns!

Spring 2010 Interns Kara (left) and Mary (right)

TYO is pleased to introduce the latest members of its Nablus team. Welcome, Kara and Mary! They will be interning with TYO for the Spring 2010 Session along with Bieta, who has been with us since October 2009. In addition to teaching classes for women and youth, Kara, Mary and Bieta will take part in the Kalimatna Initiative this spring. Please check this blog frequently for their updates on their progress and reflections on their experiences in Nablus. For now, here is a bit about Mary and Kara straight from the source!

I have two life goals: to publish my own children’s books and to be multilingual. I am excited for the ways that working at TYO will contribute to those goals and other positive work I do in the future! As for the basics, I grew up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, but I’m not Amish. I graduated from American University in D.C. in May, and since then I’ve been a wandering/wondering anthropologist. Most recently I spent ten days with some of the world’s most interesting journalists at a media training in Yucatan, Mexico. I also spent time last fall leading youth art workshops in Guatemala. I look forward to developing my skills at promoting critical thinking through art with my class at TYO! I like yoga and bicycling. I also enjoy cooking and share meals with friends. And finally, I love to learn what I have in common with new people from different places.

-Kara

Originally from New York City, I became interested in Arabic, the Middle East, and Palestine during my freshman year at Brown University.  After my first Arabic class sophomore year, I took a year off from college to study the language intensively in Morocco and Egypt.  The summer of that year, I volunteered as an English teacher in Nahr al Bared refugee camp in northern Lebanon.  At Brown, I majored in Middle East Studies and Development Studies.  In 2007, I spent a year interning at Human Rights Watch and Human Rights First before heading to Jordan for the next fifteen months on a Fulbright grant. I would like to continue researching the Middle East as an anthropology graduate student, so I’ve applied to PhD programs for Fall 2010.  I love studying Arabic, cooking, exercising, gardening, and dance parties.  Kunafa is just about my favorite thing, so I look forward to eating a lot of it in Nablus.

-Mary

Thanks for joining our team in Nablus!

TYO recently extended its International Internship into a yearlong program with fall, spring, and summer options. If you are interested in interning with us in Nablus, please sign up here for updates and new applications as they become available. Thanks!