Esset Teshome '25

Internship: Teach for Ethiopia
Location: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Program: John C. Bogle '51 Fellows in Civic Service

Why did you choose your internship?

I knew that I wanted my career to be closely related to education, specifically within Africa and Ethiopia because that's where I'm from. I really want to give back to my community in that sense. I started looking for internships that were related to education in Ethiopia. I was fortunate enough to find one within an organization called Teach for Ethiopia so I chose this internship because it was what I wanted to do in the future. 

What have you learned?

Through this internship I have been exposed to a lot within the educational system. I have learned a lot. I think two main takeaways are that I understand the core problems that Ethiopia's educational system faces and I've also been able to see the different solutions that are being implemented to actually address those problems. 

I think overall, this internship has given me good hope for Ethiopia's educational system. 

What has been most memorable for you? 

My most memorable moments within this internship has been when I got to meet with the elementary school kids that Teach for Ethiopia works with in Bahir Dar, which is another city outside of the capital. It was absolutely wonderful to see the kids interact with each other and how they interacted with the project that Teach for Ethiopia is leading called Teach for Ethiopia's Book Bank. I think that honestly that moment has taught me the importance of books and how much impact they can have on children.