Don’Jea Smith at MCLA’s Institute for the Arts and Humanities

Pictures from the soup-making activity!

Internship Overview:

Supported with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Institute for the Arts and Humanities (IAH) serves as a group of liaisons who provide opportunities to bridge the gap in communications between the campus community and in the wider community using the arts and humanities to bring love, care, and accountability back into our spaces where diversity, equity, and inclusion are welcomed and celebrated.

Reflection:

“During my internship, I have learned what it means to start creating a work environment that is truly diverse and inclusive.” -Don’Jea Smith

Instead of being accustomed to the world and believing things will always be how they are right now, IAH interns work to ensure that our workspaces are not plagued with oppressive mentalities and leave room for self-love and care. Often, the work we do as interns is emotionally taxing and arduous. We host events to pose dialogue that will challenge people to constantly address and redress their positioning, privilege, and access in their communities. We have addressed food insecurity on campus by creating a soup-making activity with a local chef. We were able to feed our community, write poetry, and dialogue about the surrounding systems of oppression that interlock with food insecurity. I cannot wait for our upcoming projects!