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American University Student Tailor Dortona

Internship Experience

“My trip to China has changed my entire life plan and I am so grateful to have been given the

opportunity to study with g-MEO at Sichuan University.” – Tailor Dortona

September 24th, 2015 – Tailor Dortona, a student of the Spring 2015 semester at the

g-MEO Chengdu American Center for Study Abroad, distinguished herself not only in her

studies but also the internship program for which she participated during her stay in

Chengdu. It was always Tailor’s dream to study in China; in the beginning of 2015 with

the help of g-MEO, she was offered a Chengdu Government Scholarship, Sichuan

University Scholarship, and Wufu Chen Scholarship, making her dream become reality.

Tailor at Sichuan University Huaxi Campus

Tailor is currently a senior at American University majoring in Justice, Law, &

Criminology and creating a minor in Disability Studies. Tailor’s areas of study include the

international disability rights movement, special education, and disability employment

policy. In past years, she has interned for 2gether-International, the U.S. Department of

Education's Civil Rights Division, and worked as an Equal Employment Specialist at the

U.S. Department of the Navy's Office of Civilian Human Resources. After graduation,

Tailor plans to continue her studies and earn a masters or PhD while working on diversity

talent acquisition and employment policy in the private sector. Ultimately, she hopes to

be employed as a Chief Diversity Officer or Disability Program Manager and serve the

International Council on Disabilities.

In preparation for the semester, g-MEO and the Chengdu American Center learned about

Tailor’s desire to research the education and employment of persons with disabilities in

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China. Consequently, the International Public Welfare Internship Project was established

by the Chengdu Season Disabled Community Development Center, the Disabled Persons

Professional Training Center of Chengdu, the Chengdu American Center for Study Abroad

(g-MEO), the Sichuan University Graduate Student Union. Tailor also participated in a

complementary research internship at the Sichuan Academy of Social Science under the

guidance of Liling, the Director of its Sociology Institute. By the end of the three-month

program, Tailor told us she appreciated her internship experiences and gained a better

understanding of the overall view of the education, life and employment of persons with

disabilities in Chengdu and China.

Group photo of International Internship Program (from left): Director Fan Xiong from the Chengdu Haiyuan Disabled

Community Development Center, SCU intern Holly, g-MEO student Tailor, Director Fan Ge.

Tailor visiting the Chengdu Disable Persons Professional Training Center.

Introduced by Jingyu Wang, Director of the Chengdu American Center, Tailor and Holly

(the volunteer intern from the Sichuan University Graduate Student Union) had their first

meeting with Xiong Fan, Director of the Chengdu Season Disabled Community

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Development Center. They toured around the Sunshine Family and Shelter Factory and

took group photos with some of the students. Tailor later visited the Disabled Persons

Federation of Chenghua District and “Aihui’ Autism Rehabilitation Center. There, she was

able to speak with teachers, volunteers, and parents of students with autism spectrum

disorders and to observe various classes.

Visiting the Disabled Persons Federation of Chenghua District and the Chengdu College of Special Education of Chenghua.

In the following week, Tailor paid a visit to Qiangfei, a 21-year-old boy with cerebral palsy.

With the help of Holly acting as an interpreter, Tailor had a conversation with Qiangfei

and learned that he could read more than one hundred characters, which is incredible,

considering that he had never attended school. Tailor was also amazed by the dedication

of Qiangfei’s father who worked nonstop and even built wheelchairs for his son using

materials found around the city. Qiangfei did not have many visitors to his home and

expressed his sincere appreciation for their visit.

Tailor and Holly visiting Qiangfei’s family.

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Tailor talking to children in sign language.

Tailor saying hello to a student.

Tailor’s internship program ended with a profoundly impactful visit to the Chengdu

Special Education School. Established in 1922,

the Chengdu Special Education School is the

largest comprehensive special education

school in Sichuan Province with a long

history and strong teaching staff. During the

visit, Tailor was fortunate to meet a group of

blind students in their physics class. These

students were incredibly brilliant and Tailor

was happy to see that all of their materials

were being translated into braille so that they

could take full advantage of the curriculum.

After that, the group arrived at the place where

blind students learned about the art of massage, and

Tailor was confused why blind people learned this

skill, which she thought should be a doctor’s

specialty. Teacher Yan explained to her that most of

the blind people in China are masseuses, because

they are so limited for employment. “The situation

is totally different in America, where blind people

can do whatever they want, like being a lawyer or a

teacher”, Tailor replied.

At the end the internship program, Tailor told us

that she appreciated all of the experiences made

possible by her participation in these internship

programs. She gained a better understanding of the day-to-day lives of persons with

disabilities living in Chengdu and with this knowledge, Tailor hopes to help enact

systemic changes which can improve the quality of life and guarantee equal opportunity

for persons of all abilities.

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A Letter from Tailor Dortona

Dear Sherry, Amanda, and Estella,

This is the highlights of my work since returning from China...

Since my return to the United States, I have done many things with the disability community... I was

also able to visit the Kennedy Center for the 25th anniversary celebration of the passing of the

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) this summer. At this event I met a few people who work at

the U.S. State Department, all of whom wanted to know more about my adventures in China...

I've been very busy helping g-MEO to recruit new students to the program. Students are always very

happy to hear about the Chengdu Mayor's Scholarship and the opportunity to intern for academic

credit! I also filmed a short video to promote studying abroad for the President of American

University's new campaign. In the video, I advise new students to consider doing their internship

abroad and tell them that I did my internship in China. The link to this video is below (I am #8):

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HDbGv5VkkfQ

Before I came to China, I interviewed with the 100K Strong Foundation and they decided to film me

living in Chengdu for their new campaign called "Find Your China." A Chinese film crew visited me

in Chengdu and we traveled all around the city together. They recently released the video and it has

already gotten a lot of views! The link to this video is below:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?list=PLqWLnK_-lfqAKfVUtK7-r4aqQjF7CrkYC&params=OAFIAVgD&

v=3OqN6PslAqo&mode=NORMAL

I am now an Ambassador for the 100K Strong Foundation and as such, I was invited to attend a

cocktail reception and dinner at the White House Historic Society to hear The Deputy Secretary of

State speak about US China relations and President Xi's arrival to the country. After Secretary

Blinken spoke, I was able to speak with him about my trip to China. I told him about my work with

the disability population at my internship and my desire to work for the U.S. State Department...

Secretary Blinken's wife, Evan Ryan, is the Assistant Secretary of State Department's for

Educational and Cultural Affairs and he promise to introduce me to her in the near future to talk

about my trip to China and my career goals.

I will also be giving a presentation at the Public Anthropology Conference (PAC) in Washington, DC

in October. The presentation will discuss my experiences in the city of Chengdu, specifically my

32 Broadway, Suite 1701, New York, NY 10004 Tel: (212) 785-0812 – Fax: (212) 785-0813 – Info@g-meo.com – www.gmeochina.com

interactions with the disabled population. Professionals and students from around the country will

be present at this conference.

Now I am on a plane to Austin, Texas to attend the U.S. Business Leadership Network's (USBLN)

annual conference. This organization helps American companies to measure how accessible and

accommodating they are for employees and customers with disabilities. I am in the USBLN's Career

Link Mentor program and will be speaking at the conference in front of more than 700 people to

tell them about myself, including my recent trip to Chengdu, and my career goals...

My trip to China has changed my entire life plan and I am so grateful to have been given the

opportunity to study with g-meo at Sichuan University.

Sincerely,

Tailor Dortona

2015-09-26