Adelle Villarente ’23 was nervous about applying to the John Jay Justice Capital Initiative Fellowship, but after remembering the courage of her Filipino parents who immigrated to this country, she threw her hat in the ring. “I knew that was what I needed to get a head start on my career in media,” said the sociology and Spanish interpretation and translation major. After being awarded the Fellowship, including a $2,500 scholarship, Villarente landed an internship with The Laura Flanders Show.
What was your internship experience like?
The Laura Flanders Show speaks to my generation because it’s an independent news program and podcast focused on delivering the truth. It’s not connected to a big corporation. It’s not trying to create clickbait. Instead, the show’s producers want to highlight problems and offer solutions. They’re also providing a platform for underserved communities. I was thrilled to work with them because they uplift BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) voices. I would shadow somebody from the company each day and they’d show me the ins and outs of their job. I saw how they conducted interviews, created scripts, and formulated each podcast and episode. I also got to handle some of their social media posts. One of the most exciting parts of the internship was making a podcast for the show’s website featuring the plight of Filipino nurses during the pandemic.
“Most of my family works in the healthcare system and they risked their lives working in hospitals during the pandemic. I wanted my podcast to help identify actionable models of change that could save nurses’ lives.” —Adelle Villarente ’23
What was it like creating your own podcast?
Being Filipino, creating this podcast was super personal for me. I wanted to give back to my community, provide a platform for their voices, and showcase a prevalent issue that affects Filipinos. When I discovered that 31.5 percent of Filipino nurses died from Covid-19, it hit me hard. Most of my family works in the healthcare system and they risked their lives working in hospitals during the pandemic. I wanted my podcast to help identify actionable models of change that could save nurses’ lives.
This project gave me the opportunity to create the story’s foundation with background information and then conduct interviews with people from the Filipino and nursing communities. Together we imagined a future where nurses were better cared for and Filipino nurses didn’t die at such an alarming rate.
What are your career goals and how did this internship help shape that aspiration?
I really enjoyed working on the show’s social media platforms and creating their content. Getting this internship with The Laura Flanders Show actually helped me get another micro-internship with John Jay’s Career Center as a social media content creator. My fellowship experience has turned me—a student who was shy and worried about being accepted—into someone who can envision a professional career ahead of them.
