The first quarter is critical in laying the foundation for the SikhLEAD Summer Internship Program. It allows SALDEF to properly assemble and finalize a cohort of intelligent and passionate students while considering possible offices for their Internship placements and relevant programming. During this quarter, the SikhLEAD 2023 Program recruited a total of 55 candidates, with 46 students participating in the Regional Program and 9 students in the DC program with a representation from 18 different states.  

The SALDEF team primarily focused on Intern placements for their Summer Internships. We ensured that the Interns applied to a variety of Internships and facilitated this process for them by building new relationships and tapping into the established ones with the different offices. The Internship placements included Congressional offices such as the offices of Senator Schumer, Senator Manka Dhingra, US Rep Rob Wittman, Nonprofits such as APIAVote, CAPAL and the IRF Secretariat..   

This quarter was also focused on putting together the best of programming for the SikhLEAD 2023 cohort which includes a  blend of professional and faith-based topics. From Sikhi inspired discussions and Leadership/Professional development sessions, to Sikh Elected officials panel to the Power of SALDEF’s Partnerships panel, roughly 20- 25 speakers were secured for the overall SikhLEAD programming this summer. SALDEF also partnered with the Sikh Health Network during this quarter to run Health clinics across the country as a SEVA project for the SikhLEADers. 

The second quarter will build off the work and planning done in the first quarter by having the Interns begin their Internships and SEVA projects in June alongside participating in the SikhLEAD Program from June 10th - August 12th.

SALDEF's SikhLEAD program is open to all 50 states and provides high school and college
students with Internships in state and local government as well as with partner
organizations across the country. This past year SALDEF had over 80 participants in
the SikhLEAD DC and SikhLEAD Regional Programs. In addition to Internship
opportunities, the SikhLEAD Internship programs provides students a chance to:
• Collaborate on Capstone Seva (community service) projects
• Attend networking events
• Connect with Mentors
• Gain professional development through the leadership workshops including
discussions with Sikh elected officials and Sikh Americans in the White House.

The SikhLEAD 2023 Summer Internship program is currently accepting applications for this year. The application deadline is January 31st, 2023. 

This summer, the SikhLEAD Regional Internship Program hosted a cohort of 64 Sikh youth from 15 states across the country.  Interns were placed in Regional State Assembly/Senate offices and local offices of Members of Congress/Senators. The interns also attended different speakership series such as Sikh Elected Officials panel, SikhLEAD Alumni panel, and Guru-inspired leadership panel to inspire the young leaders with current Sikh professionals in the field.

Additionally, this year we were able to return to in-person events for DC SikhLEAD interns! 9 Sikh youth and aspiring professionals At the end of the program, each intern was paid a stipend of $1500 on behalf of SALDEF. The SikhLEAD interns gained professional experience with SALDEF partners at EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission), WHIAANAPI (White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders), Senator Schumer, and Senator Blumenthal.

The SikhLEAD DC 2022 Internship Program brought together 9 talented students from across the country to intern at our nation’s Capital. Internship placements included the White House, Congress, Senate and EEOC. Interns were able to gain invaluable skills and network with Congressional members including participating in a reception with members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

SikhLEAD Regional 2022 Internship Program selected 66 students across the nation to participate in the program this summer from June 11th- August 13th. These SikhLEADers were placed in coveted local, state government and partner organization Internships. The program also hosted virtual sessions for the SikhLEADers every Saturday inviting esteemed speakers such as Senator Manka Dhingra, Rep Ranjeev Puri, Councilman Mikey Hothi for Sikh Elected Officials Panel, LTC Kamal Kalsi and Kulvir Singh (SikhRI). In addition to this, professional development sessions were conducted and all the SikhLEADers were connected with Sikh Mentors from their respective fields of career interest to provide them with guidance and mentorship.

In 2021 we successfully placed 83 SikhLEAD internship participants in various internships all across the country including congressional offices, federal agencies, and Washington, DC-based organizations. The participants also successfully completed 18 seva projects that contributed to the community. In addition, they also received mentorship, attended various workshops and gained many leadership development opportunities throughout the summer. The highlight for many of the SikhLEAD participants this summer was the ability to grow their network with many other young Sikh professionals and students from all across the country.

In 2021 we have placed 15 students into our Washington DC SikhLEAD Internship program. These students are from 9 states and have internships at the Equal Employment Office, Rep. Illhan Omar, Senator Manka Dhingra, NCAPA, Congressman Thompson, New Heights Communication, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and others.

Regionally 67 students from 17 states have been placed in internships with multiple assemblymen and assemblywomen, senators, council members, mayors, state representatives, partner organizationsin State legeslative offices and other partner organizations. 

The SikhLEAD Internship Program also requires students to complete group seva projects, attend leadership development sessions and obtain advise from their mentors. 

In 2021 we have accepted 15 students to our Washington DC SikhLEAD program and Regionally we have expanded to over 15 states (Including - CA, NY, MI, IL, FL, MD, VA, MA etc). On average, we have enrolled about 5 to 10 students in each state in the regional program.  

Both the DC and Regional SikhLEAD students are currently under the placement process. Seva projects are also being assigned to them to be delivered during the summer.