This summer, we are very lucky to again be able to offer at least three WAYK internship opportunities. These positions are sponsored by our host community (St. Paul Island) in partnership with ACSPI, APIA, and a number of other regional organizations.
Participating in a WAYK summer project is one of the best ways to be fully immersed in another language, do hands-on work with revitalization, support learners as they strive for fluency, and learn and experience the WAYK method itself. Interns who have participated in past summer intensives have developed strong WAYK skills as a result of their experiences, and we love that many of them have returned to work with WAYK again.
Because our interns are sponsored by local and regional organizations, each intern will have their transportation, lodging, and food costs covered for the summer. While we are not yet able to offer paid positions, the only personal expense for interns this summer will be incidental purchases. The summer intensive is a long project, running from May 28th to August 20th. We give priority consideration to applicants who are available for the entire length of the project, since, of course, it is the most effective use of our host community’s funding.
WAYK is now accepting applications for this summer’s intern positions. We are looking for Native language activists, university students, teachers and other professionals with a variety of skills and interests including language acquisition, education, linguistics, neuroscience, computer programming, film, theater, writing, and more. The ideal WAYK intern is someone who has a great sense of humor, is self-aware, flexible, adaptable, and, above all, ethical and honorable.
We are looking for applicants who are open-minded and sensitive to other cultures and cultural protocols, take feedback and criticism well, work well as part of a team, know how to take the spotlight as a leader and how to help discreetly from behind the scenes, and are somehow both realistic and optimistic about the uphill battle of language revitalization. This summer, our WAYK interns also need to be especially good travelers. They should not be afraid to spend a summer living in a shared house on a remote Alaskan island (with limited wifi!) and should be willing to “get dirty” working on language in the field. If this sounds like you (or someone you know) we encourage you to apply!
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Timeline For Internship Applications:
Application Deadline January 23, 2017
Application Review, Selection of Finalists, & Interviews January 24—February 19, 2017
Selection of Interns February 20, 2017
Orientation & Training Teleconferences March—May, 2017
Internship Program May 28—August 20, 2017
To learn more about what to expect from a WAYK summer project, click here. Please read these expectations thoroughly before applying. You may also want to check out information we’ve posted about our tentative summer schedule.
To apply for an internship, click here.
