Kimberly By Goytia ’26

“At the Advocacy for Refugee and Immigrant Services for Empowerment (ARISE) my technical title is a Business Development and Finance intern with a focus on fundraising. Through this role I’ve been able to support ARISE in different aspects of their organization and also play a role in helping the operations of their sister branch, the Refugee & Immigrant Support Initiative (RISI), at Smith. Due to the flexibility in being able to jump onto different projects no day is truly the same, which really keeps you on your feet and allows you to get creative with problem solving.

Maddie DelVicario, experiential learning coordinator at Smith, leads ARISE’s sister branch RISI and she’s one of the mentors at the Jandon Center for Community Engagement, so we meet every week to share updates.

The biggest lesson I learned is that working in the nonprofit space requires constant pivoting to move projects forward. One day I might be meeting with Alisa Klein from Grow Food Northampton to get advice on our own farm development project, the next researching and meeting with local publishers for our refugee- and immigrant-centered cookbook, planning a film fundraiser in collaboration with Smith professors, or talking with Professor Lindsay Poirier about how data collection and storytelling can intersect to further advocate for the families we serve. Every day you are basically learning something new!

What surprised me the most was how dynamic and alive the work became in very little time. Many of our projects were built as we went, and I quickly realized that when your values align with an organization’s mission, there is never a dull day because you are tapped into every corner of the work. My day-one self would be shocked and thrilled at how much has unfolded and how much I’ve grown in the process.

As a computer science and statistical & data sciences major, I once assumed my future would follow a very structured, technical path. What I discovered instead is that technology can be used as a tool for advocacy, and that realization expanded what I thought was possible for myself. Courses like Human-Computer Interaction-Platform Activism showed me how computing can intersect with activism and social impact. That spark grew into brainstorming online interventions with classmates to support mutual aid and RISI’s mission, which eventually flourished into this internship, which became something else entirely.

My advice to Smithies is to not box yourself into one ‘right’ trajectory just because it seems like the clearest path. The unknown can feel daunting, but it is also where the magic happens. Be open to intersections, follow what excites you, and let your path be imperfect, nontraditional, and uniquely yours. You will find your voice and your place along the way, and it might surprise you just how expansive that place can be. That, to me, is the beauty of a Smith education because it gives you freedom to explore, create, and redefine what your path can look like.”