Mhanna conducts Fellowship 6,330 miles from campus
When rising junior Athraa Mhanna closes her eyes to sleep at night she hears a community buzzing with activity and the sounds of traffic lull her to sleep.
She’s 6,330 miles from Cornell College conducting research for her Cornell Fellowship in Amman, Jordan.
“Amman is the city that literally never sleeps,” said Mhanna, a Cornell sociology major. “Everything is open almost 24 hours a day and people are out at all hours of the day and night.”
Mhanna is spending her summer in Jordan at a local elementary and middle school–Al-Resalah School. While she calls Phoenix, Arizona, home now, Amman was home when she was a young girl.
“Upon arriving at the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, I immediately felt at home. I was surrounded by my fellow native Arabic speakers in a country that I left when I was just 7 years old. Although my memories in Jordan from that time are fading away, I am beyond grateful to be able to make new memories throughout this internship experience,” Mhanna wrote in her Fellowship blog.
Mhanna received this funded Fellowship through Cornell’s Berry Career Institute. She dreamed up the details of her internship during her first year at Cornell and has worked with career coaches and family in Jordan over the past couple of years to design it and make it happen.
“Interning in Jordan is important to me because it provides me with an immersive cultural experience where I get to serve a community that has previously served me. Serving my community is of utmost importance to me,” she said.
She didn’t waste any time putting her sociology major to work.
“The goal of the internship is to help Al-Resalah School better serve its students’ needs and develop equitable strategies for supporting students’ academic potential,” Mhanna said. “In doing so, I will work with school staff to identify gaps in students’ needs and then help develop new strategies to address student needs.”
She plans to share her research results with the school administration through a final presentation or report. She’ll also spend part of her internship developing lesson plans and working with students as they develop their English language skills during a summer camp.
Mhanna says this internship has set her up for future success.
“My future plans are to engage and work in global humanitarian efforts, whether that is working for a non-profit organization or a government agency,” she said. “I strongly believe in global citizenship, and this internship has opened a door for me to embark on this goal.”
She has worked toward her goal for years now. In fact, in 2017, she interned for Promise Arizona, a non-profit organization that serves immigrant communities in Phoenix by empowering them to use their voice and make a political impact. Then, last summer she interned for the Iraqi American Refugee Center in Phoenix where she used her Arabic language skills to help refugee families.
She says she hopes other students take advantage of the Berry Career Institute’s Fellowship program.
“Experiences like this can teach you really important skills that you wouldn’t otherwise have and are truly an eye-opening experience. It is an enriching experience culturally, professionally, and personally,” she said.
This summer Mhanna is excited to build relationships with students and teachers in Jordan and explore the city that never sleeps.
About Cornell Fellows:
Since 2005, 407 students have completed Cornell Fellowships at 235 unique sites, on six continents, 35 different countries, 29 states, and 132 cities.
Cornell Fellows is the college’s premier opportunity for high-level internships and professional mentoring. Cornell Fellows are engaged in hands-on projects throughout the full-time eight-week fellowship, complete at least one academic credit, and receive financial support to offset costs associated with housing, transportation, food, and supplies. Cornell Fellows are highly visible in campus communications and must complete several additional requirements outside of the fellowship.
