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KALAMAZOO, Mich.—The eight-week summer camp offered through Umoja Debate Team in Detroit is no ordinary kids camp. It's a unique youth empowerment program that uses “debate as a vehicle for creating the leaders of tomorrow.” Similarly, the 12-week debate coach internships offered to Western students through the Broncos Lead Internship Program are using meaningful, resume-worthy work experience as a vehicle for creating long-term career success.

Each summer, about 35 young students participate in Umoja’s debate camp, which was founded by alumnus Jerjuan Howard, BA ‘20. With the guidance of their coaches, the youth work to develop a wide variety of communication and leadership skills that they put into practice in mock debates. The summer program culminates in a final debate in front of faculty and students at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.

Supporting those students this summer were five current Western students interning as debate coaches. Nylah Dobson, a psychology major who transferred to Western this year, sees the relationship-building aspect of her internship as critical to her future career as a psychiatrist. 

Describing herself as someone who grew up having to talk to social workers regularly but never feeling like those experiences were personal to her, Dobson is committed to having a positive impact on kids, particularly preventing Black children from being misdiagnosed with a mental health or behavioral issue based on a lack of understanding. 

“One thing I’ve learned through this experience is that kids are very funny and unpredictable,” she says. “Their knowledge is underestimated. After (Umoja), I’ll be more open to interpreting what kids are saying. You have to slow down and listen to them, because when you’re younger, you have a harder time communicating what it is you’re trying to say. It’s my job to learn their language and translate it to mine.” 

Fellow Umoja coach Maureen Kengara, a sports management major entering her senior year, agrees. “This is a prime age for kids to start learning how to communicate and advocate for themselves.” 

With academic minors in event planning and public relations, Kengara, who is also a member of the business fraternity Phi Chi Theta, recognizes the importance of learning how to relate to and communicate with kids and other age groups for her own professional aspirations in sports event planning. 

Each week, Umoja students and coaches take a “Fun Friday” field trip to visit a different business or organization in Detroit as a way of developing their openness to new people, ideas and experiences in their community. In addition to the benefits this offers the students, the coaches benefit from the networking opportunity as well.

“Sports management is a competitive field,” Kengara explains. “The Friday field trips we take with the students are perfect preparation for that because they’re all about learning how to connect with people in the real world.” 

A pre-business law major and member of the Business Law Society at Western, Nykyla McCarthy found the Friday field trips beneficial to her own career plans. 

“The networking is huge for me,” she emphasizes. “I got to interact with people at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law and ask them questions. And I get to attend an actual city council meeting and see what that’s like.”

Using the Umoja Broncos Lead internship as an opportunity to connect with the community she grew up in and help young students tackle the same confidence problems that she had at that age was at the center of Pheobe Hill’s internship experience.

“I’m from Detroit,” says Hill, a computer information systems major. “I was involved in the Student Conservation Association here. I got involved in Toastmasters here because I had a huge problem speaking in front of people. So, everything with Umoja kind of fit together like puzzle pieces for me.”

Assuming leadership and ownership of their coaching roles with the summer camp students has been a big takeaway for all five Broncos interning at Umoja this summer.

“I think what surprised me the most is how hands-on this internship experience was,” explains Kyle Jackson, a marketing student considering a career in coaching in marketing or sports. “Coming into this internship, I assumed that we’d just be observing and supporting the program and not doing the coaching ourselves, but it’s us doing it. And it’s great to know that we’re having a positive impact on younger students and the community.”

Howard, Umoja’s founder, understands the importance of finding meaningful paid internships during college. 

“It’s hard to find those kinds of paid experiences that are also impactful to the community,” he notes. “The interns serve as the primary teachers for these students and they’re the ones who carry out Umoja’s mission.”