Youth Intern (Fall 2026)

About the role

The IRC’s Refugee School Impact Program (RSIG) and Refugee Youth Mentoring Program (RYMP) support the integration and holistic wellbeing of school-aged students who hold a humanitarian immigration status. The programs work to reinforce a sense of belonging and security within schools and surrounding communities, build students’ confidence in their English and academic abilities, and help students develop graduation and career plans tailored to their unique interests and skills.

Responsibilities

• Build supportive, culturally responsive relationships with refugee and immigrant youth in the after-school program.
• Deliver engaging, differentiated small-group and one-on-one sessions that reflect the IRC’s Social Emotional Asset Development (SEAD) framework.
• Design and adapt culturally relevant instructional materials and activity guides for multilingual learners.
• Contribute to a shared team library of resources and instructional tools accessible to all program staff.
• Help administer and record attendance, pre- and post-assessments, and participant progress data.
• Co-facilitate or participate in volunteer and staff orientation and training, modeling effective facilitation and instructional techniques.
• Support continuous quality improvement by identifying programmatic gaps and opportunities and raising them to the Youth Supervisor and Coordinator.
• Maintain a safe, inclusive, and welcoming learning environment.
• Tutor Track: Provide academic tutoring and homework support across content areas. Deliver English Language Development (ELD) instruction and language practice aligned to Maryland WIDA standards. Design, adapt, and differentiate ELD lesson plans and supplementary materials for multilingual and English Language Learner (ELL) youth. Administer IRC’s pre- and post-ELD assessments and contribute to reviewing results to inform instruction.
• Mentor Track: Mentor youth in college exploration, post-secondary planning, and career awareness, connecting learning to real-world pathways. Design and adapt college- and career-readiness curriculum, units, and workshops (e.g., goal-setting and study skills, college options and the application process, financial aid and FAFSA awareness, resume building, interview practice, and workplace readiness). Support youth in identifying their interests, strengths, and goals, and in building the habits and confidence to pursue them. Integrate English language support as needed, while keeping college and career growth the primary focus. Help track mentee goals and progress and contribute to program data and reporting.

Requirements

• Currently enrolled in, or holding, a bachelor’s or master’s degree.
• Experience teaching, tutoring, mentoring, or coaching children and youth (in a formal or informal setting such as public schools, after-school programs, or community programs) preferred.
• Tutor track: preferably in TESOL, Applied Linguistics, Education, Linguistics, or a closely related field; candidates pursuing a TESOL certificate or specialization are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Mentor track: preferably in Education, Counseling, Social Work, Youth Development, Career Counseling, or a closely related field.
• Experience working with English Language Learners preferred; experience with refugee youth and/or in U.S. public school settings desired.

Skills

• Ability to create and deliver engaging, differentiated lessons and workshops for multilingual and ELL youth.
• Tutor track: knowledge of ESL/ELD instructional practices and strategies; familiarity with the WIDA English Language Development Standards Framework preferred.

Benefits

• Medical insurance starting at $163 per month.
• Dental starting at $6.50 per month.
• Vision starting at $5 per month.
• FSA for healthcare and commuter costs.
• A 403b retirement savings plans with immediately vested matching.
• Disability & life insurance.
• An Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

Pay

Unpaid.

Schedule

Minimum commitment of 24 hours per week. In-person at the Silver Spring office and at a minimum of 15 hours per week is required. Internship term begins with an in-person intern orientation on September 7th, 2026 from 9:15AM-3:30PM.