AAI Summer Intern Fellowships
The Columbia AAI Summer Intern Fellowship Program is an integral part of the AAI goal to advance research and foster interdisciplinary dialogue. In partnership with The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) and Apex for Youth, Columbia students gain challenging, meaningful, and real-world experience when matched with a mentor at TAAF and Apex to work on research, administrative and program support, process development and improvement, and project management. In addition to having a dedicated mentor, our students also participate in in leadership and professional growth activities.
Founded in 2021 in response to rising anti-Asian hate and long-standing underinvestment in AAPI communities, TAAF supports the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in their pursuit of belonging and prosperity free from discrimination, slander, and violence. TAAF funds best-in-class organizations working to mobilize against hate and violence, educate communities, and reclaim narratives through its pillars of Anti-Hate & Safety, Education, Narrative Change, and Resources & Representation.
Apex's mission is to empower underserved Asian American and immigrant youth from low-income families. Founded in 1992 in New York City's Chinatown, the organization combats systemic barriers, poverty, and the "model minority" myth by providing a holistic framework of support from pre-K through young adulthood.
2026 TAAF Summer Internship Fellows
Alexa Espaldon
During her time at TAAF, Alexa Espaldon served as the Programs Intern for the Thriving AANHPI Leadership Accelerator (TALA). In this role, she developed discussion guides and resource directories for fellows and mentors, facilitated strategic mentorship pairings, and researched career advancement opportunities to support the cohort's professional growth.
"My experience at TAAF showed me the importance of building supportive networks, both for myself and for other students, as we navigate the professional world. It has also inspired me to continue creating opportunities for under-resourced students, especially those who may not have access to professional networks or mentorship."
- Alexa Espaldon, 2026 TAAF Summer Intern
Ames Yu
As Programs Operations Intern at TAAF, Ames Yu facilitated the organization’s transition to Salesforce and reorganized historical grant records. They also collaborated with the data and research team by copyediting the national and NYC "State of AAPIs" reports and designing surveys for the Seattle Cities Initiative.
"I really want to do more community-focused nonprofit work in the future—something about TAAF that is so incredibly unique is that they are a national organization serving the Asian American community, yet are able to create such impactful results even at the local community level of NYC, LA, SF, and Seattle."
- Ames Yu, 2026 TAAF Summer Intern
2026 Apex Summer Internships Fellows
Claire Jong
As Data Intern at APEX, Claire Jong cleaned and analyzed survey datasets, translating complex findings into clear visualizations and actionable deliverables. Additionally, she spearheaded an independent data analysis project from end to end.
"This internship strengthened my interest in pursuing work at the intersection of data, technology, and social impact. Seeing how APEX uses data to reduce barriers to engagement for youth and volunteers in the local community showed me how technical skills can be deeply human."
- Claire Jong, 2026 APEX Data Intern
Shrina Dong
During her Operations Internship at APEX, Shrina Dong provided critical support for a wide range of events, from volunteer drives to recruitment. Additionally, she collaborated on diverse, cross-departmental initiatives encompassing finance, HR, and facilities management.
"I gained a comprehensive understanding of how Apex operates as an organization in terms of both organizational strategy and cross-functional workflow. Having grown up in Chinatown. and being able to contribute to an organization like Apex which has created tangible change in my own community, was deeply fulfilling."
- Shrina Dong, 2026 APEX Operations Intern
Program Alumni
2025 TAAF Summer Internship Fellows
In summer 2025, Kathleen Hoang and Dorothy Zhang were summer interns at TAAF. Kathleen and Dorothy worked on administrative support, process development and improvement, and project management. In addition to having a dedicated mentor, they participated in leadership and professional growth activities.
Kathleen Hoang
Kathleen Hoang, the daughter of Vietnamese refugees, recently graduated from Columbia University, where she studied the afterlives of war through military history and empire. Over the past eight years, she has organized across grassroots and federal spaces— from OCA, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, the Southeast Asian Freedom Network, and the White House Initiative on AANHPI—and with author Viet Thanh Nguyen on literary and academic projects. This summer, she is working with The Asian American Foundation as a Data & Research intern. Beyond advocacy, she moves through fashion spaces as a site of memory and resistance, exploring how art, politics, and justice converge.
"My summer at The Asian American Foundation was easily my favorite internship — having just graduated from Columbia, I am grateful to have been surrounded by incredible mentors who supported me in navigating all the different paths I could possibly take in my first year postgrad. Now as I move into fashion full-time, I carry with me the same purpose and community-driven values that fueled my political work, and I owe much of it to to TAAF."
- Kathleen Hoang, 2025 TAAF Intern
Dorothy Zhang
Dorothy Zhang is a computer science major at Barnard College. Her research at the Columbia Computational Design Lab with Professor Lydia Chilton focuses on the role that LLMs can serve in promoting effective communication of complex scientific topics. She previously interned as a Software Engineer Intern at Samsara and as a Machine Learning Intern at the Port of Seattle. She is passionate about gender equality and diversity in the technology industry and hopes to pursue a career in which she can help drive change in this area.