Residential College Spanish Language Internship Program
The Spanish Language Internship Program (SLIP) links Spanish-speaking U-M students with community-based partner organizations in Ann Arbor and Southwest Detroit in order to provide you with unique service learning opportunities in the Latino community. Through your volunteering activities, you will gain insight into the cultural, political, and socioeconomic issues affecting this group, with opportunities to practice your Spanish. Furthermore, all students have the option of volunteering through SLIP or can register (RC Core 309) for 2/3 LSA Academic credits. For those who are interested in traveling to Detroit, you will need to clear a 6 hour block of time, 12 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Monday or Thursday, in order to provide sufficient time to travel back and forth to Southwest Detroit and volunteer at your chosen site. Students who are interested in working with one of our local groups should leave a four hour block of time open one day per week. The SLIP program provides you with transportation to and from Detroit and you will always travel in a group.
There are 14 openings for Southwest Detroit and some locally. All will be offered to those interested on a first come basis. Please contact Teresa Sanchez-Snell, tssnell@umich.edu, (734) 647-6713 (office), for an interview as soon as possible.
Ann Arbor Sites
Planned Parenthood of Ann Arbor:
Students who volunteer at the clinic are required to be fluent in both written and spoken Spanish. Students assist with translations of medical terminology to patients receiving care, translation of written materials related to patient education for services, assisting with scheduling of appointments with Spanish speaking clients.
First United Methodist Church, Ypsilanti
Students volunteering at this site can assist with ESL classes on Mondays or Wednesday from 7 - 9 pm. Students are required to be fluent in both written and spoken Spanish.
University of Michigan Poverty Law Clinic
Students who intern with the law clinic will be filling the much needed gap as translators of documents and interpreters for Spanish-speaking clients. Interns will receive training and gain knowledge of legal issues, translating experience and able to develop a relationship with Spanish-speaking clients. Fluency in written and spoken Spanish is necessary for this site.
Ann Arbor Open School
Ann Arbor open offers a radical educational alternative to students, teachers, and parents in the Ann Arbor Public School District. Parents and Teachers founded the school on the belief that children come to school already immersed in their learning and have their own strengths and interests. The school seeks to support the individual and provide guidance, stimulation, and support while striving to be a leading educational force in open education. The school is piloting Spanish as a Second Language (SSL) program for heritage Spanish speakers in the school as well as for non-Hispanic students. SLIP students interning here would work with classroom teachers in grades K-2 to develop 20-30 minute Spanish lessons that integrate into the current classroom themes.
Southwest Detroit Sites
Academia de las Americas
Students work along side teachers in a unique Detroit Public School where students are taught in Spanish all day long! Here elementary students are using "Spanish only" in order to gain proficiency at an early age. SLIP volunteers will assist inside the classroom and with after school tutoring. Interns who are placed at this site need to be fluent in both written and spoken Spanish, must get a Detroit Police background clearance done and need to have good interpersonal skills to build relationships and trust with the students. Volunteering at this site requires 5-hour block of time one day per week.
The Pablo Davis Senior Resident Center:
This site is open to Bilingual students who are interested in conversing with the residents and helping to coordinate activities for our Southwest Detroit's oldest generation. The Pablo Davis Senior Center is the only senior resident center in Southwest Detroit and is named after resident, Pablo Davis, a local artist who assisted Diego Rivera with the murals painted at the DIA.
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation:
Students who volunteer at this site are able to select from the areas: ESL Classes in the Adult Education Department, The HIV/AIDS Prevention Department and the after school programs in the Youth Department. Students who volunteer at this site need to be fluent in spoken and written Spanish in order to meet the needs of the Spanish-speaking clients. Students must get a Detroit Police background clearance done and also have good interpersonal skills to build trust with clients.
Mexican Town Community Development:
Its goals and programs include promotion of small businesses and the cultural district and promotion of cultural programs and activities that educate and enrich the lives of residents of the neighborhood and across southeastern Michigan. Students who volunteer at this site will be will work alongside the Executive Director and assigned staff member.
