Be a part of advocacy in Native Country!
Our internships are year-round and project-based, allowing interns to choose from a curated list of meaningful projects that align with their interests and goals. Internships are 100% virtual and self-directed, meaning you must take the lead in managing your own work, time, and learning. They can be crafted to meet school or college requirements.
Check out our Opportunities
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How to Apply
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To apply, please submit all three required items below to [email protected]:
1. Cover letter including the following:
2. Resumé 3. Writing Sample |
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Current Interns
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Lila Bigalow is a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation and is a current high school sophomore in Los Angeles. She writes for her school newspaper, runs on the track team, and is a member of DECA.
Lila says, "I am extremely excited and appreciative to have the opportunity of interning at the Association on American Indian Affairs. With this position, I hope to build upon my skills and interests, while uplifting a community that I appreciate and want to connect and learn more about. Through this position, I plan to show my dedication to the association and community, as well as hopefully leading to a new understanding.” |
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Claire Lavarreda is a World History Ph.D. student at Northeastern University, focusing on Indigenous history, archives, memory, and material culture. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Eastern Connecticut State University in 2021, where she majored in History and Social Sciences and minored in Spanish. Her mixed heritage inspires her work, encouraging a blend of approaches, perspectives, and cultures.
Claire says, "I am so excited to join the Association as an intern. The work being done to support youth, repatriation, and cultural preservation is very important, and I'm delighted to be able to contribute to this work. When you're in academia all the time, it can be easy to lose sight of the necessary and present-day work happening around you. As someone in the history field, I am especially interested in NAGPRA and repatriation in general and can't wait to intern with the Association on American Indian Affairs." |
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Kailash Muthukumar is a current high school junior at Alpharetta High School in Georgia. Kailash competes in Policy Debate, plays soccer, does economics research while interning under professors, and is involved in the Future Business Leaders of America, among other interests.
Kailash says, "I am glad to intern at the Association on American Indian Affairs. I hope to bring about positive change for Native Nations while acquiring a broader perspective on Indigenous rights and policies to build on my diverse skill set to further help empower Native Peoples’ socioeconomic and geopolitical standing. I am eager to learn more about Native regional economies as well as the interaction between culture and sovereignty during my time as an intern." |
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Macy Rose is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and a student at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, studying International Business. She plans to attend law school to continue her passion for advocating in Indigenous and Native Nations Law, as well as International Law. Macy resides between Honolulu, Hawai’i, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Macy says, "I am honored to have the opportunity to work with the Association. I look forward to learning from my coworkers and gaining knowledge in various topics the Association addresses. My goal is to contribute my experience and help others learn about the Association, Native Nations’ histories and contemporary realities, and how to support Native Nations. I hope to make a lasting impact on the Association and honor our Ancestors by preserving our diverse cultures." |
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Safaya Smallwood is a bachelor’s candidate in Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania with minors in Native American and Indigenous Studies as well as Anthropology. Her research focuses on the political ideology behind revolutionary social movements, looking at the intersections between Indigenous struggles for sovereignty, Black histories of resistance, and broader anticolonial efforts spanning both grassroots community-based contexts and transnational landscapes.
Safaya says, “I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to contribute to the Association on American Indian Affairs’ incredibly impactful legacy of championing Native rights and empowering Native Nations. I am excited to delve into issues of sovereignty, political recognition, land rights, repatriation, and redressing the transgenerational impacts of colonial violence through this work. My aim is to center Native voices and highlight the lived experiences that interweave the personal with the political, informing continued efforts to decolonize both the archive and the broader political landscape.” |
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Antonio Santana is a citizen of the Chaubunagungamaug Band of Nipmucs from the Nipmuc Nation and currently works as an EMT and a Research Associate in the Neurobiology Department at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Massachusetts—Amherst in 2024 with a dual bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Psychology. With his background in science and Native heritage, he hopes to blend traditional healing practices with modern medicine as an aspiring physician.
Antonio says, “I am honored and excited to intern with the Association on American Indian Affairs and deepen my understanding of Native Country as a whole. As an aspiring physician and healer, it’s easy to become so focused on academics that you lose sight of the real health concerns affecting your Nation. This is why I am excited to raise awareness and learn about the impact of intergenerational trauma and healing, a phenomenon that continues to shape the health and well-being of Native Peoples across generations.” |
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Veda Ramachandran is a junior at American High School in Fremont, California. She participates in Choir and Musical Theatre, and enjoys making art, thrifting, and listening to music.
Veda says, “I’m honored to be working with the Association on American Indian Affairs and deeply value the opportunity to learn more about Indigenous Nations. I hope to pursue a career rooted in advocacy and justice for Indigenous Peoples. Through this internship, I hope to deepen my understanding of the political and social challenges that Indigenous Peoples face and explore meaningful ways to create lasting change.” |
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Ava Gross is a rising senior at William & Mary, majoring in Religious Studies and minoring in Anthropology. In the summer of 2024, Ava had the privilege of interning at the Institute for American Indian Affairs (IAIS) where she was given the opportunity to engage in both curatorial and archaeology projects, alongside their accompanying research and archival counterparts. Empowered by her time at IAIS, Ava is passionate about the preservation and expansion of Native Nation sovereignty.
Ava says, “I feel incredibly honored and privileged to have the opportunity to be a part of the Association on American Indian Affairs’ historic legacy. Fondly reflecting on my time at IAIS, I greatly appreciate the value of collaborative work, and thus, I am extremely excited to work alongside the leading changemakers of present-day Native Nation sovereignty as I learn and grow in this field. Understanding the influence of history’s progenitor on the contemporary reality of the government-to-government relationship between Native Nations and the U.S. government, I hope to support the ongoing efforts to protect and reinforce Native sovereignty.” |
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Riley Ehlert is a citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and a current high school junior in Los Angeles. Riley plays varsity basketball, runs on the track team, and is involved in a local Indigenous Youth Council in addition to other clubs. In her free time she enjoys reading, beading, and listening to music.
Riley says, “I am honored to have the opportunity to be an intern at the Association on American Indian Affairs and extremely excited to gain a better understanding of the contemporary issues facing Native Peoples. Through this internship, my goal is to advocate for the protection of Native Nations by spreading awareness to others. I hope to deepen my personal cultural connection by educating myself on Native sovereignty.” |
Current Volunteers
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Ruth Nasrullah is a retired independent journalist and communications specialist based in Houston. Since leaving full-time work, she has devoted her time to a variety of volunteer activities. She is a Texas Master Naturalist and volunteers at Armand Bayou Nature Center in Pasadena, Texas. Ruth also volunteers with the Red Cross, specializing in shelter management, and has served as a board member of the Houston chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for many years. She and her husband created COVID-19 Wall of Memories, a virtual memorial to people who died of COVID-19, and she oversees the site's blog and social media campaigns. She is a former board member of Green Muslims, a nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting Muslims to nature and environmental activism. Her interest in Native causes reflects her general concern for marginalized, underserved and misunderstood groups in today's United States, and in particular is connected to her belief that as the descendant of European immigrants, she owes a debt to this continent's original inhabitants. Ruth is from New Jersey and is married with an adult daughter and two adult stepsons.
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