| by Stephen Diehl
A hallmark of the Middlebury Institute, immersive experiences are an important way for students to become world ready and work ready. It’s also how they gain an advantage in the job market. The Institute has longstanding partnerships with organizations that give students exceptional opportunities for professional experience not available elsewhere.
Daron McDonnaugh spoke to us from Monrovia, Liberia, where he is completing an International Professional Service Semester with Catholic Relief Services for his International Policy and Development (IPD) master’s degree.
I previously worked for the Peace Corps, and when you extend your two-year contract, you get the chance to collaborate with another organization. I worked with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) when I served in The Gambia, doing nutrition workshops and monitoring and evaluation, so I had some familiarity with them. I really like what they do—peacebuilding, nutrition programs, emergency COVID relief, so many programs—and I wanted to get more involved.
Right now I’m working on writing a grant through USAID for a program called Student Feeding Activity (SFA), which would provide school meals to schools that don’t have meal programs. Only a select number of schools are provided with school meals, but research shows that school meal programs help with cognitive abilities and energy throughout the day. I’m also working on emergency COVID response. Around 70 percent of the local population is not vaccinated, so we’re working on efforts to change attitudes toward the vaccine. So, my days are filled with a combination of writing proposals, meetings, field work, and attending events.
I’ve always been involved in capacity building, from AmeriCorps to Peace Corps. I started my own organization, when I was an undergrad, called Paying it Forward, in which we took marginalized youth from low-income areas to universities to make connections with current students with a goal of predisposing them to want to attend college. So, it’s always been a passion of mine to try to help out in any way I can. Working with CRS was perfect because they do a lot of the kind of work I’m interested in. I’m especially interested in nutrition, and working with CRS helps me get to the root of why people are malnourished. It feels like a calling—like I’ve been put in this position to use my talents and skills to help other people out. It doesn’t matter where—I’ve helped in America and now I’m helping internationally.
What drew me to Middlebury were the international networks and relationships they have with a lot of NGOs as well as the Institute alums who I can talk to, who can help me out in my career path. They’re great for helping to navigate through the nonprofit organization world as well. Also, Middlebury is one of the top graduate schools for international development work, and a lot of students end up doing international work. A lot of the professors have a lot of connections—some were students here and went on to work for great organizations. As an Institute student, I’ve never met so many people from all over the world.
International Professional Service Semester
MA in International Policy and Development
| by Stephen Diehl and Andrew Cassel
A fourth-semester International Policy and Development student, Patton is gaining professional experience through her practicum with the United Nations Office of Disarmament Affairs.
Video
| by Mary Zuccarello
Through semester-long practicum, students take on internships, jobs, and consultancies that allow them to apply skills and knowledge gained through their prior coursework in a professional setting. These experiential learning courses serve as stepping-stones to their future careers.
| by Jason Warburg
A two-year, salaried fellowship at a government agency awaits eight Middlebury Institute students who won Presidential Management Fellowships this year.
