Valley Forge Park Ventures Research Internship

CCATE is a non-profit community center whose mission is to ignite social transformation by developing the talents and empowering the Latinx community through education, culture, art, technology, health, and science. Starting Monday, March 11, 2024, CCATE seeks 1 research intern to work in partnership with CCATE youth to develop the “Bridging Landscapes” project, a new initiative aimed at fostering a deeper connection between families in Norristown and surrounding outdoor recreational spaces, particularly Valley Forge National Historical Park. Key objectives include understanding and eliminating physical and linguistic barriers to access between the community and green spaces.

Position Description (10-15 hours/week for a total of 400 hours over a maximum of 40 weeks)

  • Plan, organize, and conduct research to address community concerns around:
    • Lack of awareness about Valley Forge and other nearby recreational spaces
    • Public transportation constraints 
    • Options for organized, guided tours
    • Insufficient Spanish language resources
    • Options for program & event registration
  • Facilitate and manage youth research position(s)
    • Conduct training sessions for Youth Research Leaders on data collection, engagement strategies, and project objectives.
    • Supervise youth-led creation of bilingual audio tours, website translations, etc. to address research findings
  • Event Coordination (in collaboration with other CCATE staff)
    • Organize three safe riding and three bicycle maintenance workshops
    • Organize four group bicycle trips to Valley Forge and around the community

Requirements

  • Bilingual (fluent in English and Spanish)
  • Interest and experience working with middle school and high school students (5th – 12th grade)
  • Experience with or interest in community-based research
  • Interest and experience in working directly with the Latinx community
  • Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build relationships with students, parents, and school staff
  • Ability to work independently and as part of a team, with strong organizational and time management skills
    • Equipment and ability to work remotely recommended
  • Commit to 40 weeks of work on this project
  • We ask that all staff be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines and to submit the following required clearances in order to be able to work with students:
    • FBI Federal Criminal History (Act 114)
    • The Child Abuse History Clearance (Act 151)
    • Criminal Background Check (Act 34)

This is an hourly position that pays $25/hour.

Working Conditions: This position is a part-time, primarily in-person position, requiring 10 hours of work (of which some hours can be virtual) per week. 

To apply, please email a cover letter, resume, and 1-2 professional references to Lupita Barrientos, lupita@ccate.org and Caitlin Brady, caitlin@ccate.org by Friday March 8th, 2024.