As a center in the IU School of Liberal Arts, ICIC is committed to supporting the student body through a variety of opportunities including volunteer, internships, and practicums. These opportunities provide students with the ability to integrate knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills development in a professional setting. After a pandemic-enforced break from student involvement in 2020-2021, we are pleased to have welcomed three students to our team in the current academic year. In this blog, we highlight these bright, highly motivated students and the work they are doing. We will also hear from one of our interns as she reflects on her time at ICIC.
For more information about our student opportunities, email us at icic@iupui.edu
Lauren Carpenter, Intern
Lauren, an undergraduate majoring in Chinese Language and Culture, joined ICIC for an 8-week internship during the Fall 2021 semester. While at ICIC, Lauren worked closely with the Indiana Workplace English Collaborative to conduct research and provide administrative support. With her help, our November event, English in the Workplace: Creating Globally Minded Businesses, went off without a hitch and we have begun developing resources for workplace English providers in Central Indiana.
Lauren reflected on her internship saying,
“What initially caught my eye was that it was an internship that was through a community organization that focused on providing resources to those who need them right here in central Indiana… Seeing work that I contributed to be used alongside that of professionals in the field to be shared with community members for the benefit of the community was extremely rewarding. Prior to this experience, I had very limited experience in a professional setting and I had never worked in an office setting before. Not only am I leaving with professional experience, but also the knowledge that the small contribution I made will be used to improve the lives of non-native speakers of English in Indiana’s workforce.”
After graduating this upcoming May, Lauren is planning to move to China to work and continue her studies. Although we are sad to see her go, we can’t wait to see where Lauren goes next, and are glad ICIC could play a part in her IUPUI experience and professional career.
Simon Chen, Intern
Simon, a second-year student in the IUPUI MA TESOL program, is our newest staff addition. Simon joined us in January to complete a one-semester internship under Dr. Connor which will also count as credit toward his degree. To begin his internship, Simon is working closely to support our new partnership with IUPUI’s History department and Tula State Lev Tolstoy Pedagogical University in Russia. In particular, Simon has been conducting research on Content and Language Integrated Learning as well as developing materials for the upcoming 6-week virtual program.
Anna Kane, Graduate Research Assistant
Anna, a second-year student in the IUPUI M.A. TESOL program, joined ICIC in August as our 2021-2022 Graduate Research Assistant. Anna supports the center through a variety of research and administrative activities. As RA, she conducts research for various papers and projects, prepares presentation materials, provides administrative support, researches and manages the online newsletter, and updates the website.