Hello, my name is Amelia Trahan and I am a recipient of the social justice WOW grant. Just a little something about myself; I am now going into my sophomore year at Brandeis and plan on studying English with a minor in AAPI studies. With the help of this grant, I can proceed with my remote internship with Sapphire, which is a non-profit organization dedicated to uplifting black and brown voices and experiences through the creative arts.
Understanding black individuals’ stories through an abstract perspective such a poetry or visual art (i.e., photography) has been such a wonderful and enlightening experience so far! Since starting my role as a project development assistant, I have completed multiple tasks that have benefited the organization and myself as I gain new knowledge and skills every day. One of the many tasks that I have as the project development assistant for Sapphire is to upload and maintain our social media presence which is best known on Instagram as @sapphirehuespress. This account is primarily used to promote the press section of the organization; this includes our published works such as our literary magazines and artbooks. We use our social media platforms to push sales for these publications and also to gather aspiring artists whose work can be highlighted in these art books and magazines.
Recently I have gained more experience with software such as Canva which helps to design the posts I must make. For example, this month the submissions for our upcoming art book, “Black And”, have opened up, so I have had to make a post using Canva. Designing these posts has been delightful and I cannot wait to make more!
Due to Covid, my internship is completely online this summer and therefore meetings and interactions take place online as well. I usually have a weekly meeting with one of the founders of the organization and director Salena Deane. During these meetings, we usually discuss our game plan for the week, which recently has included sifting through submissions together and deciding which to accept or reject.
Looking through the submissions we receive for this upcoming artbook is definitely my favorite thing to do, especially when I am doing it with Salena. There is never a dull moment when analyzing them, and I never get tired of the genuine curiosity and admiration I have for each piece I see.
One of my goals for learning this summer is to widen my knowledge and experience with a variety of software used for design and publishing. Recently, I have been achieving this goal one day at a time by taking online courses built to certify me in software such as Adobe InDesign, Canva, and also web content writing. I hope to be certified in all of these by the end of the summer and use them as additional skills when on the prospect for career-boosting activities.
I have no doubt that by the time this internship is over, I will have gained some expertise that will be necessary in order to excel in my desired career path.