We are excited to announce that the En Voz Alta (EVA) peace and security mentor program has found a new home with WCAPS. From their inception, WCAPS and EVA shared a vision to advance the leadership and professional development of women of color in the fields of international peace, security, and conflict transformation. Given WCAPS existing programs and partnerships, there is no better fit to realize EVA’s next great iteration.
En Voz Alta pairs Latina mentors and allies from the peace and security community with Latina early-career professionals and students in undergraduate or graduate school in the U.S each fall semester. The program runs from mid August to mid December.
Based on mentees’ expressed career goals and interests, their mentor will help them visualize their studies and early career. Additional programming will be geared to support their professional development.
FROM THE LEADERSHIP TEAM
EVA will be open for applications June 1st to June 30th, annually.
Run of program: August - Mid- December, annually.
Cohort Size: 15 Mentees
Mentors needed annually: 15 Mentors
Facilitators: 1 Position (duration: June - December)
Assist with hosting general meetings
Assist with meeting agendas
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Program Components: Mentorship assignment, skill-building, monthly networking (a cohort general assembly), and a mandatory Mentee program portfolio project.
Mentee Portfolio Project:
Each EVA Mentee will be partnered with a Mentor over the course of the program to work on two to three self-selected items from our portfolio categories list below: (please note a list of external potential programming/opportunities/applications will be provided for help in selecting your two items, however, Mentees are not limited to the opportunities listed - the list will be provided upon acceptance)
Programming experience:
Career day (K12 program): Present a presentation to a class of youths
Develop and present a pre-recorded workshop to be published on the WCAPS youtube - must be related to peace and security.
Propose and co-coordinate an event in partnership with WCAPS Latin America and Caribbean Region (LACR) working group (WG) or another WCAPS WG or Chapter. See list here.
Application submission: (Must creating a ProFellow account)
Internship / fellowship / volunteer applications
Capstone requirement fulfillment (with your host institution)
Extracurricular activity (volunteer work)
PAID internship or Funding/Grant application for an internship/fellowship
Post-grad job applications
Part time
Full time
Conference submission - apply and/or attend a conference related to professional development or peace and security
Submit a piece for an external journal or internal WCAPS publication
Apply to professional associations aligned with the field that require substantive application and/or CV to gain admittance.
We extend gratitude to Andrea Pimentel, who launched the En Voz Alta pilot as an intern with the support of WAND staff and the vision of the communications director, Corey Greer Fraze.
The current program leadership encourages any inquires to contact us for more information at envozalta@wcaps.org
Program Outcomes
Participants build a robust network of peers, mentors, and leaders in the national security space that will support and streamline their entry into this career field
Participants gain the skills needed to navigate the sector and launch a career in the peace and security community
Participants leverage their professional growth and development in the peace and security space to mentor them as the next generation of Latinas in the sector.
Participants leverage their professional growth and development in the peace and security space through a structured program portfolio. See our website for more details on the Mentee program portfolio requirement.
