2025 Civic Engagement and Leadership Program Scholarship Application

CELP application for 2025 is now open. Interested candidates can apply here.  Please read the instructions below carefully.

The Korean American Citizens League of New England (KACL-NE) invites high school and college students to apply to the 2025 Civic Engagement and Leadership Program (CELP) Scholarship.

KACL is a non-partisan, non-profit organization founded in 1990 to empower Korean-American communities and their allies through civic engagement, leadership, and cultural programming. Since 1998, CELP, as KACL-NE’s signature program. The provided Korean-American students with internship placements in municipal, state and local government offices as well as weekly professional development and mentoring sessions by KACL board members and other accomplished Korean-American leaders. The program has evolved into a Scholarship program and remains a great opportunity for students to explore careers in public policy, hone their leadership skills, and contribute positively to their communities.

Scholarship recipients are required to 1.) be actively engage in community service; 2.) complete one community service event with KACL-NE during the 2025 – 2026 calendar year; 3.) complete an established civics internship program in the area of public policy, voter registration or government (state, municipal, or federal); and 4.) complete end-of-program evaluations and a short essay describing their experience and community service project, which will be published in KACL-NE’s annual journal.  Scholarship recipients are required to complete their civic engagement program between June to August. Scholarship recipients receive 50% of the scholarship upon being selected and the remained upon proof of completion of all community service and civic engagement requirements.

Scholarships are $1000 for high school students and $2,000 for college students. Exact amount may vary depending on other factors such as full-time vs part-time.

Participating Offices:

CELP fellows are expected to identify their civic engagement program.  Past scholarship recipients have worked in local and state government and past opportunities have included:

• Representative Vanna Howard (17th Middlesex)
• Representative Tackey Chan (2nd Norfolk)
• Representative Tram Nguyen (18^th Essex)
• Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (City of Boston)
• Representative Chynah Tyler (7th Suffolk)

Duties and responsibilities at legislative offices may include but are not limited to the following. Please note that the specific duties and responsibilities at each office may vary.

• Constituent work: Log outreach in constituent database and draft response letters to constituent inquiries
• Research: Conduct research and draft memos on different subject matters
• Hearings and briefings: Attend briefings and committee hearings on various policy matters, and report back to assigned offices
• Legislative tracking: Monitor the status of legislation, amendments, and testimonies
• Communications: Maintain and monitor social media, draft documents, and conduct other communications-related tasks as assigned by office supervisor
• Others: Support other administrative or operational tasks as assigned by office supervisor

Community Service Project with KACL:

Starting this year, selected fellows are expected to complete a community service project during CELP that positively benefits Korean American communities in New England. This can be in the form of volunteer hours with KACL, a short research paper, a video or artistic project, or any other creative means that combine fellows’ talents and interests with demonstrated needs of Korean-American communities in New England. During CELP, fellows will identify a topic of interest and receive guidance from KACL in developing and implementing their project.

Application Timeline:

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. As such, it is highly recommended that interested candidates submit their applications as soon as possible. The timeline is subject to change.

• Monday, March 3, 2025: Applications open
• April 31, 2025, 11:59 pm EST: Application deadline
• Between May 10, 2025 and May 30, 2025: Interviews for selected applicants to be conducted on a rolling basis
• Week of May 30, 2025 or earlier: Final decision notification
• June: CELP fundraiser and orientation/training
• June – August: Summer CELP program

Eligibility Requirements:

• A current high school or undergraduate student in good standing
• A US citizen or permanent resident of Korean American origin
• A New England resident or attend a college in New England
• Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (on 4.0 scale)
• Passion for contributing to Korean-American communities and alignment with the KACL-NE mission
• Excellent oral/written communication skills
• Evidence of being willing to learn, adapt and take initiative

What former interns have to say about the program:

“Serving as an intern last summer inspires me to pursue a career in  public service and government of my own in the future as it is the best  way to give back to the community.”

“I feel that wherever I decide to go with my studies/career, this  internship has helped me to develop transferable skills that I can be proud of.”

Questions:

Contact info@kacl-ne.org for any questions regarding 2025 CELP application.