LGIS Summer Internships Transform Theory into Practice

For students in Penn GSE’s Language, Globalization, and Intercultural Studies (LGIS) master's program, learning extends far beyond the walls of the classroom. A hallmark of the program is its required summer internship, for which students work in community organizations across Philadelphia, applying concepts from coursework while gaining hands-on experience navigating multilingual and multicultural environments. 

According to Professor Betsy Rymes, the internship is a key component of the program that has been part of LGIS since its earliest days, helping students connect theory, research, and professional practice.

“If you're learning to understand how multilingualism functions in contemporary society, you're going to need to experience it,” Rymes said. “In this field, you can't just study it in the abstract. You have to be out there and see what's going on.” 

The summer experience is designed as the culmination of a yearlong process. Students first complete community-based service-learning projects during the spring semester before transitioning into more extensive summer internships, often with the same organizations. Rymes describes this progression as “allowing students to build confidence, relationships, and a deeper understanding of the communities they serve.”

This summer, students are working with organizations that support immigrant, refugee, and multilingual communities throughout Philadelphia. Among them are Zade Dohman, Jay Han, Howard Ho, and Anqi Song, whose experiences illustrate how the internship serves as a bridge between academic concepts and real-world practice, enriching their Penn GSE experience. 

Dohman, from Spearfish, South Dakota, returned for a second summer as a teaching assistant with the Penn Netter Center for Community Partnerships. There, he taught literacy, linguistics, and Philadelphia history to West Philadelphia high school students, who, in turn, taught reading skills to elementary school children. 

“I had done this internship in 2024 and was so taken by the positive impact it left that I wanted to come back,” Dohman said. “Seeing the chain of knowledge pass down to the high schoolers and then to the elementary students elucidates so much about what it means to be a good educator.” 

Han, who is from Ordos in Inner Mongolia, China, spent the summer at Moder Patshala, an educational program serving primarily Bangladeshi American families in West Philadelphia. As an SAT instructor and community participant, he taught high school students while observing how language, culture, and relationships shape learning. 

“As an LGIS student, I was looking for an internship where I could engage with a multilingual community in a meaningful way,” he said. “I wanted an experience that would allow me to connect what I had been learning in class with real interactions beyond the university.” 

Ho, who is from Hong Kong, also interned at Moder Patshala. A writing instructor, tutor, and program assistant, he supported students from elementary through high school. 

"My LGIS coursework prepared me to pay close attention to what languages students used and to why they choose a particular language in a particular interaction,” he said, noting that students strategically used Bangla and English to communicate respect, familiarity, cultural belonging, and peer identity.

Anqi Song, from Beijing, interned with the Welcoming Center, a Philadelphia nonprofit that supports immigrants and helps them build skills to achieve economic mobility. Working within the organization's Immigrant Leadership Institute (ILI), Song helped interview participants, document immigrant stories, compile storybooks that captured the experiences of multilingual communities, and organize events. 

The storytelling component of the internship was what initially drew her to the placement.

"I am deeply interested in listening to people's stories across diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds," Song said. "Every personal narrative offers a window into a unique life trajectory and a social world that others may never have the opportunity to experience firsthand." She added that storytelling can be both "a healing and an empowering practice" that allows people to make sense of their experiences and connect with others. 

Song said one of the most meaningful moments of her summer came during a community event called Love Across Borders, which celebrated cultural exchange through food, dance, music, and storytelling. Song helped organize the event and also participated by performing a traditional Chinese dance.

"It was rewarding to contribute to the event not only as an organizer but also as a participant, sharing a part of my own culture with the community," she said. 

For Rymes, stories like this highlight exactly why the internship remains central to the program. Students learn to become what she describes as “multilingual communicators” who are flexible, reflective, and capable of working across cultures and communities. 

“It pushes them out of their comfort zone,” she said. “They're giving something to the community, and the community is helping us get something. It's learning by doing.” 

The result is an experience that shapes both professional trajectories and personal perspectives. Dohman now hopes to influence language policy and educational reform, while Han plans to pursue a career in international higher education and student support and Ho wants to work at the intersection of multilingual education, community engagement, and research. Song said her internship experience solidified her desire to continue exploring questions of language and identity through storytelling in a Ph.D. program.

"This internship didn't just change what I know," said Han, "it changed how I see people, language, and the world around me."