Name: Huong Giang Le

Class Year: 2015

Major: Psychology

What’s happening? We’d love to hear how your internship is going! This summer 2014, I received funding from the Davis Project for Peace Grant to undertake a project for children with autism in Vietnam. The project is called “Unconditional Love” and it runs from May until the end of August, involving nearly 50 volunteers and 15 families with children with autism in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Why I applied for my internship: My interest in special education and mental health has led me to co-found a volunteer group called RUBIC with a friend in Hanoi to support children with autism and their families. After running a pilot project, we identified the biggest challenge was to get professionals and experienced therapists to work with us to provide quality services for the families, especially those with financial difficulties. With the Davis grant, we will be able to provide intensive training sessions for our volunteers so that they can interact and play with children at home and outdoors to improve their social and communication skills.