September 23, 2008
Through the Jones Scholars Internship Program, Tulane University graduate students are given the opportunity to apply their skills, interests and education to benefit public education in New Orleans.
Offered through the Scott S. Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives and funded by the Eugenie and Joseph Jones Family Foundation, the program pairs graduate students with traditional Orleans Parish schools, charter schools and education-related non-profit organizations in Orleans Parish. A maximum of six students are chosen each semester to support projects designed to improve the quality of K-12 education.
Felicia Brown (J.D. ’87) serves as the institute’s program manager. “Before we find the student to match with a school, we solicit program proposals from several organizations,” says Brown. “We talk with the school community and they express what their needs are for that school. We then help them shape and identify projects that address pressing and challenging needs where they might be able to use a graduate student as a resource.”
Brown said that students interested in applying to the program do not necessarily have to have a background in education.
“Part of our goal,” she says, “is to provide our resources broadly so that a number of schools can take advantage of our program and the diverse skill set of our graduate students.”
Reflecting that goal, this semester’s Jones Scholars are pursuing degrees in business, law and public health while bringing their skills into community-related projects. One such scholar is Ian Furman (J.D. candidate ’10), who is pursuing a joint law and masters of business administration degree Tulane. The second-year law student is working with the Children’s Bureau of New Orleans in an evaluation of its grief and trauma group intervention project.
While previously open to both undergraduates and graduate students, the program is currently open to graduate applicants only.
For more information on the Cowen Institute or the Jones Scholars Internship Project, visit the website. Institutions interested in utilizing a Jones Scholar also may visit the website to download an application.