My Time at the Oriental Institute

By Kelsey Waxman, Public Education and Outreach Intern
Summer 2014

Image: Kelsey Waxman. Photo Credit: Carol Ng-He.

The summer internship is a rite of passage for all students. This past May, my friends and I left the University of California Berkeley campus in search of work and learning experiences that would help us to delve more deeply into career fields that interest us as well as calm our nerves (or excite them!) as the post-graduate world inches nearer and nearer. As I now prepare to return to California for my third year of my undergraduate education, I know that I will be bringing with me a new skillset and invaluable experiences that will guide and inform my academic and career choices. I owe this to my time as an intern in the Public Education and Outreach Department of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago.

As a Windy City native and a graduate of Chicago Public Schools, I grew up learning about the complex and beautiful world of the ancient Near East through a curriculum developed in part by the Oriental Institute. I had no idea that ten years after falling in love with stories of the Great Pyramids and admiring the intricacies of the world’s first recorded writing systems that I would have the chance to work on improving the very same lesson plans that I was taught. Under the guidance of innovative and ambitious mentors in the Public Education and Outreach Department, much of my time was spent working on a multi-year plan to revitalize the Institute’s ancient Near East curriculum, which is used by thousands of schools across the Chicagoland area. This task included becoming familiar with the current curriculum and its contents, researching funding opportunities, and attending meetings with possible collaborators in hopes of designing a multi-faceted and accessible curriculum. As we looked into what we should incorporate into the new curriculum, I was surprised to rediscover how many contributions to mathematics, science, engineering, and technology originated in the ancient Near East. These advancements are not discussed as often as other aspects of the Near Eastern culture (such as arts and religion) but they are just as important and prolific. As a liberal arts student pursuing a degree in Middle Eastern history and Arabic language, it brings me great joy to know that I have contributed to a project that will allow students interested in all disciplines to fall in love with the rich cultural and scientific history of the ancient Near East.

The skills that I have utilized during my time as an intern at the Oriental Institute will undoubtedly benefit my personal and professional life in the years to come. The opportunity to write portions of several grant proposals will serve me well as I, like many other students, will apply for jobs, grants, and other types of funding in the future. In addition to all of the wonderful professional experience, the Oriental Institute was the perfect place to have a summer internship; I loved being able to walk around the galleries during breaks and enjoy the museum’s extensive and well-curated collection.

While college is a wonderful time in one’s life, it is also a period filled with questions and uncertainty. My time as an intern at the Oriental Institute has assured me that I do have marketable skills and the intelligence to pursue a job that I love in a field that interests me. It has assured me that my journey has just begun.