POLITICAL INTERN SCHOLARSHIP
Political Internship Fundraiser
Every year, KACL-NE hosts a fundraising event to support its Internship Program and ensure that we can continue to provide opportunities for young Korean-Americans in areas where there is a lack of Asian-American representation. All proceeds raised at the event goes directly into funding the internship program and programming for our youth.
Film Premiere of LIQUOR STORE DREAMS (2022) with Korean-American director, So Yun Um!
Please join us for a night of fun and fundraising on Friday, May 17th from 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM at the Emerson Paramount Center! Get ready to mingle, eat delicious Korean snacks and kimbap, and support a great cause. Our event will premiere ‘Liquor Store Dreams,’ directed and produced by Korean-American So Yun Um. Please RSVP here. We look forward to seeing you!
‘Liquor Store Dreams’ is an intimate portrait of two Korean-American children of liquor store owners who set out to bridge generational divides with their immigrant parents in Los Angeles. They confront the complex legacies of LA’s racial landscape, including the 1991 murder of Latasha Harlins and the 1992 uprisings sparked by the police beating of Rodney King, while engaged in current struggles for social and economic justice.
Money raised at this event will go towards the Political Internship Program hosted by the Korean-American Citizens League of New England. The program provides scholarships to Korean-American high school and college students.
Q&A with director and producer So Yun Um and community leaders will follow the screening.
- So Yun Um, Director/Producer, Liquor Store Dreams
- Linda Champion, Senior Counsel, Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane LLP and President, Korean-American Citizens League of New England (KACL-NE)
- Q.J. Shi, Director, Asian Business Empowerment Council
- Susan Chinsen, Moderator; Creative Producer, ArtsEmerson and Founding Director, Boston Asian American Film Festival
The event promises to be a blast with inspiring stories, scrumptious Korean snacks, Asian-inspired cocktails, and exciting raffle prizes (Korean liquor baskets and round trip tickets!) Don’t miss out on this opportunity to make a difference while having a fantastic time. See you there!
2024 Political Internship Program
Since its establishment in 1990, one of KACL’s primary objectives has been to encourage Korean-Americans to actively engage in American politics. For this reason, the KACL considers its Political Internship Program as one of its most important initiatives. The Political Internship Program sponsors young Korean-Americans interested in politics and public service to work at the offices of various U.S. Congressmen, Governors, Mayors, and Attorney Generals during a summer term. Some of our interns have gone on to pursue their own political careers as lobbyists in Washington D.C, Attorney Generals’ Assistants, and a U.S. Embassy employee as a liaison between the Republic of Korea and the United States.
The Korean American Citizens League of New England (KACL) invites high school and college students to apply to the 2024 Summer Political Internship Program. KACL is a non-partisan, non-profit organization founded in 1990 to provide a coherent political voice within the community. The KACL political internship program strives to encourage Korean Americans to participate in local politics, expose student to public policy-related careers and mentors, and to develop and hone their leadership skills.
KACL will select four high school students and two college students. High school students will receive a $500 stipend and college students will receive a $2000 stipend. In addition to working in local government, interns will also be provided with professional development and mentorship by KACL board members. The program will start in early June and end in early August. Scholarships are formally presented at KACL’s Political Internship Fundraising Dinner in mid May (exact date and location to be determined). At the end of their internship, students will be expected to write a short essay describing their experience, which will be published in KACL’s annual journal.
This year, interns will be placed within one of the following offices:
- Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (City of Boston)
- Representative Vanna Howard (17th Middlesex District)
- Worcester City Councilor Thu Nguyen (City of Worcester)
- Representative Tackey Chan (2nd Norfolk District)
Duties and responsibilities may include but are not limited to:
- Constituent work: logging outreach in constituent database and drafting response letters to constituent inquiries
- Research: as policy questions arise interns may be asked to research and write memos on different subject matters
- Hearings/Briefings: attend (often virtually) briefings on policy matters and committee hearings and report back on the issues
- Legislative tracking: updating information about the status of legislation and amendments filed representatives, writing testimony, and summarizing amendments
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.”
Application Timeline:
- Monday, February 26, 2024: Applications Open
- Friday, April 5, 2024, 11:59pm EST: Application Deadline
- Week of April 14, 2024: Selected applicants notified about interviews
- Week of April 28, 2024: Final decision notification
- Friday, May 17, 2024: KACL Political Internship Fundraiser at Emerson College
Eligibility Requirements:
- Applicant must be a current high school or undergraduate student in good standing.
- Applicant must be a US citizen or permanent resident of Korean American origin.
- Applicant must be a New England resident or attend a college in New England.
- Applicant must have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (on 4.0 scale), along with evidence of being a self starter, eager to learn, and have excellent oral/written communication skills.
Interested students can apply at this link.
KACL will interview selected candidates before making final decisions and sending applications to the desired office(s). Please note that while we will do our best to match interns with their first choices, KACL cannot guarantee placement with them.
For more information or questions, please contact Christine Lee at newenglandkacl@gmail.com.
- 2010 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2011 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2012 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2013 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2014 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2015 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2016 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2017 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2019 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
- 2021 Fundraising Dinner Pamphlets
Past Political Interns
1998
Thomas S. Kim | Georgetown University(School of Foreign Service)Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
1999
Caroline Kim | Barnard CollegeSenator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Daniel Yoonkwan Kim | Suffolk University Law School
Massachusetts Attorney General's Office
David Daesung Lee | Boston College M.A in Political Science
Mass. House of Rep./Mass. House Committee on Rules
Sarah Park | Harvard University
Mass. State House/Gov.Cellucci's Press Office
2000
Eun Young Choi | Harvard UniversitySenator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Song Yee Han | Harvard University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
David Kim | Tufts University
Senator Edward M. Kennedy's Office in Boston, MA
Benjamin Smith | Boston University
Mass. House of Rep./Gov. Cellucci's Ext. Relations
Irene Park | Bowdoin College
Mass. State House/Gov. Cellucci's Press Office
James Uhm | Tufts University
Masschusetts Attorney General's Office
2001
Min Suk Lee | Tufts UniversityMassachusetts Attorney General's Office
Yumee Lee | University of Pennsylvania
Massachusetts Governor's Office
Unok Nam | Mills College
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Doohyun Paek | University of Massachusetts - Amherst
Mass. State House/Gov. Jane Swift's Office
2002
Jennifer Myung | Harvard UniversitySenator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Sonia Kim | Harvard University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Yumi Lee | Georgetown University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Chan Joung Lee | Georgia Institute of Technology
Info. Tech. Div. of the Massachusetts Governor's Office
2003
Min Young Lee | Boston CollegeMassachusetts Governor's Office
Hee Jin Lee | Harvard University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Heidi Yoo | Wesleyan University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
2004
Se Yeom Kim | Syracuse UniversityMass. State House/Gov. Mitt Romney's Office
Jihun Kim | Syracuse University
Mass. State House/Gov. Mitt Romney's Office
Jeong Mee Oh | Harvard University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Boston, MA
Jia H. Jung | University of California - Berkely
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washiongton D.C.
2005
Bomie Chae | University of Massachusetts - AmherstSenator John F. Kerry's Office in Boston, MA
Hyejin Yu | University of Massachusetts - Amherst
Massachusetts Governor's Office
Eliza Chon | University of New Hampshire
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Washington D.C.
Jesse Sejin Kim | University of Massachusetts - Boston
City of Boston Mayor's Office
2006
Angelina Hong | Williams CollegeOffice of Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon
Stephanie Chang | Northwestern University
Massachusetts State House
2007
Michael Dong | Bentley UniveristyMassachusetts Governor's Office
Younyoung Lee | Georgetown University
Office of Congressman Doung Lamborn
2008
Yeonman Jung | University of Massachusetts - AmherstOffice of Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon
Michael Shin | Groton School
Office of Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon (Jr. Intern)
Jaewon Lee | Tufts University
Mass. Dept. of Veterans Services
2009
Michelle Dong | Bentley UniveristyMassachusetts Governor's Office
Steven Suh | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Massachusetts Governor's Office
Hyun Jung Kim | St. Paul's School
Office of Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon (Jr. Intern)
Brian Kim | Oyster River High School
New Hampshire Governor's Office (Jr. Intern)
Jae-Hyuk You | Phillips Andover
Office of Boston City Councilor Sam Yoon (Jr. Intern)
2010
Bo-Reum Lee | Brandeis UniversityMassachusetts Governor's Office
Han-Ju Ryu | Babson College
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Boston, MA
Deborah J. Song | Smith College
Massachusetts Governor's Office
Maria Kim | North Reading High School
Massachusetts General Hospital
2011
Sungtae Park | Brandeis UniversityMassachusetts Governor's Office
Soo Mee Yoon | George Washington University
Senator John F. Kerry's Office in Boston, MA
2012
Crystal Jang | Boston UniversityMassachusetts Governor’s Office
Ryan T. Kang | Princeton University
Senator John F. Kerry’s Office in Boston
Eunice Roh | Vassar College
Massachusetts Governor's Office
Seyoung Kim | Holy Name High School
Office of Cambridge City Councilor Leland Cheung
2013
Elizabeth LeeSoo Hee Yoon
Yoo Jin Ahn
Dong Hwan Kim (HS)
2014
Juyoung HwangSJ Richard Kim
Sol Park
Esther Choi (HS)
Beitrice Choo (HS)
Timothy Juang (HS)
Byung Joon Lee (HS)
Michael Yeung (HS)
Sihak Lee (HS)
2015
Jean ParkEsther Choi (HS)
Alex HY Park (HS)
Minki Seo (HS)
Liz Lim (HS)
Stephen Park (HS)
2016
Hannah JinHeidi Park
Junhyuk Jang (HS)
Wonyoung Jang (HS)
Yunkyo Kim (HS)
Brian Ko (HS)
Sarah Oh (HS)
Jinyung Suh (HS)
2017
WonYoung JangJames Heo
Chris Jun
JiHun Ko
Yury Namgung
Nicholas Kim
TaeHyun Lee
Alexander Park
Jeongwook Yi
2018
Hyewon Sabrina Baang | Acton-Boxborough High SchoolYubin Cho | Lexington High School
Randy Lee | Dracut High School
Jae Hoon Lee | Lexington High School
Jiung Choye
Chan Ju Scott Lee
2019
Jihyeon Grace Choi | Vanderbilt UniversityJeong Wan Choi | Lexington High School
Yehoon Jang | Lexington High School
Kateline Kim | Masconomet Regional High School
Sanghoo Lee | Weston High School
2021
Jonathan Dees | University of Massachusetts AmherstGrace Lee | Brandeis University
Lauren Lim | Lynnfield High School
David Min | Buckingham Browne & Nichols School
Shyun Moon | Newton North High School
Claire Pak | Lexington High School
Alex Shieh | Phillips Academy
2022
Stephanie Choi | Amherst CollegeYoojin Choi | Belmont High School
Rachel Heo | Longmeadow High School
John Lee | Noble and Greenough School
Esther Park | Concord-Carlisle High School
Erik Shin | Newton North High School
2023
Yubin Cho | Cornell UniversityYuhan Kim | Yale University
Cailyn Kim | The Rivers School
Kathy Lim/strong> | Lexington High School
Ryan Park | Belmont High School
Kelly Sung | St. Paul's School
Past Keynote Speakers
Prior to taking on the role of Executive Director at KAA Sam was the founding ED of the Council of Korean Americans. Under his leadership CKA grew from sixteen to 190 members, a nearly $2 million budget, and four staff.
Sam’s prior experience includes a senior policy advisor role in the Obama Administration, executive director of a national community development association, and multiple nonprofits focused on low-income and affordable housing. Sam was the first Asian American to run for office in Boston’s history, and the first to be elected to office. He served on the Boston City Council as an at-large council member for four years, and ran for mayor in 2009.
Sam has degrees from the Harvard Kennedy School and Princeton University. He has been married since 1995 to Dr. Christina Yoon, a nonprofit development professional, and has two teenage children.