DVN - SikhLEAD Q1 UPDATE

We are proud to announce our intro to SikhLEAD 2025 Summer Internship Program, running from June 7 - Aug 9, 2025! Our theme this year is “SEVA SatisfACTION - Seva in Action”. 

We have wrapped up our interviews for both SikhLEAD DC and Regional programs and are in the process of finalizing our 2025 cohort. We received over 100 applications from Sikh youth across 20+ states this year representing diverse demographics and socio-economic backgrounds. We have accepted 11 candidates for SikhLEAD DC, coming from all five regions of the country. We are proud to announce our new partnerships for this year for programming and Internship placements with APA (American Psychiatric Association), SFC (Sikh Family Center) and SETF (Sikh Education and Technology Foundation).

The Internship and Seva project placement work is the next step in the process. The 2 SEVA projects this year for the Regional cohort are Free Health Clinics and College/Career Prep workshops led by SikhLEADers. The DC cohort will work on our historical ‘Langar on the Hill’ Seva project in addition to partaking in full time summer Internships in Washington DC. The DC Cohort will also engage in a Mental Health workshop partnered with the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and participate in a communications campaign to raise mental health awareness. We will continue our partnership with the Sikh Health Network (SHN) on starting new Seva Clinic locations, while sustaining our CA clinics from last year. The College/Career Workshops will be conducted at the SikhLEADers’ local Gurdwaras with the support of Gurdwara managements. 

Regional SikhLEADers will be applying for summer Internships to Sikh partner organizations, such as: the United Sikh Movement (USM), Sikh American History Project (SAHP), Sikh American Veterans Alliance (SAVA),  Dasvandh Network (DVN), and Colorado Sikhs, and to diverse partner organizations such as: APIAVote and, as well as prominent offices of members like: Senator Manka Dhingra, Bob Menendez, and Josh Harder, and even within our own SALDEF-specific Communications and Policy departments. DC SikhLEADers are currently in the application process and are applying to Congressional offices, such as Senator Schumer, Senator Schiff, and Senator Kim, nonprofits like AAJC, NCAPA, APIAVote, as well as federal government internships at the EEOC and the DOJ among many others.

We are in the process of finalizing our summer programming for the 2025 cohort which will include direct sessions with Sikh elected officials, Sikh creatives and Sikh entrepreneurs in tech, finance to name a few. The SikhLEADers will be  placed in prestigious and valuable Internships in D.C. and their local federal offices. Through reaching out to Internship coordinators, writing letters of recommendation, and editing cover letters and resumes, the Programs team will make significant strides in improving our cohort’s chances in being placed in a summer Internship. The placements reflect a diverse field of study and profession; we have placed interns in the legal, public relations, and governmental fields. We look forward to kickstarting the 2025 SikhLEAD DC & Regional Summer Internship Program and thank you for your continued support.