June 11, 2010

Summer 2010 Interns Receive Warm Welcome

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InteRDom, the premier internship and academic study program in the Dominican Republic, and its sponsoring organizations Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD) and Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (FUNGLODE), are proud to announce the opening of InteRDom’s Summer 2010 program.

InteRDom anuncia nuevas oportunidades de pasantía e investigación para estudiantes de Ciencias PolíticasMonday, June 7th marked the official welcome for the interns, who arrived from the United States to complete an academic program, research and do an internship in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The InteRDom team planned a series of activities and events spread out over the course of a week to help the students to adapt to their new environments and to adjust to Dominican culture.  The orientation week activities included: an opening presentation and tour of the Foundation’s facilities, a tutorial on business etiquette in the Dominican Republic, a presentation on cultural adaptation, gender and race topics, a tour of InteRDom’s partner university Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) and a tutorial and practicum on how to safely use public transportation.

The week concluded with the group’s first cultural excursion of the year: a tour of the historic Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo.  The students were greeted at the first cathedral of the new world by a national tour guide, who introduced them to the history and culture through personal stories, historical accounts and a walking tour of landmarks such as the National Pantheon, Calle Las Damas (the first street of the New World), the Alcazar (the home of Diego Columbus) and the Fortaleza.  The students historical and cultural knowledge will be further enriched on future trips in the agenda to other historical sites throughout the country.

Since it’s inception in 2005, students from universities all over the world have participated in the InteRDom program. The students enrolled in the Summer 2010 program all hail from universities in the United States, including: Smith College, Lafayette College, Columbia University and the State University of New York at New Paltz.

Among the organizations and businesses that will receive international interns through InteRDom this summer are: Batey Relief Alliance (BRA Dominicana), The National Center for Public Health, the Dominican Political Observatory (OPD- Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo), Instituto Dominicano de Desarrollo Integral (IDDI) and the Dr. Robert Reed Cabral Children’s Hospital.