A little over a year ago, Anu Subramaniam (she/her/hers) joined the IRC in Silver Spring team as a youth tutor. The child of immigrants herself, Anu was looking for opportunities to give back to immigrant and refugee communities. In the past year Anu has provided support to numerous students in after school sessions, helping with whatever subject they were learning. Anu grew up in Michigan and went to Cornell University for her undergraduate studies. She studied psychology and journalism, with a particular interest in how different people have access to information, or don’t, and how that access changes their circumstances. In the fall she’ll attend law school, and she’s looking forward to taking this interest into the legal space. “My volunteer work aligns with that,” Anu says. She sees her volunteer service intimately connected to her educational and professional pursuits as she hopes to work to “enforce access and equity in a world that does not.” 

What motivates you to volunteer?

When you come from an immigrant family and you’re so grateful for the opportunities you’ve had in a new country, you want to give that back. As the daughter of two immigrants and the older sister of a child of immigrants, I’ve seen how that mentorship and learning from someone who has been through similar things is valuable. It’s something I’ve benefitted from and it’s something that I want to give back. Specifically, too, when I was growing up mentorship was typically not from people of color. And I think being able to be a person of color for other children of color who can see how I’ve acclimated and can ask me questions about life – it’s a unique opportunity that I wish I had so I want to be able to provide that.

What has been particularly moving or meaningful during your volunteer work?

Recently I’ve been able to work one-on-one with a client on geometry and I’ve gotten to see her week-to-week growth. She’s made tangible progress on her specific needs. She comes to me and asks for challenges, harder problems to solve. I see her get excited to be able to tackle something that she couldn’t previously. She wants to go to medical school and it’s great to watch her master skills that will help her get to where she wants to be.

What advice would you give to someone considering volunteering their time?

Put yourself out there and just do it. You may be scared you don’t know how to do things correctly, but it’s a learning process. Just come with an open mind, good intentions, and a willingness to learn. And don’t see it just as a service to someone else – it’s a service to you too! It’s a big two-way street, and we should lean into that.

What impact do you feel you’ve had on the community you serve?

I think it’s the individual connection that’s the most impactful – giving a student the confidence and skills to go to class better prepared. On top of that, I feel the best way to learn languages is to practice out loud, so I can be someone they can learn the language from in an immersive way as well.

What is the most surprising thing you’ve learned since becoming an IRC volunteer?

How logistically complicated the relocation process is for families and kids! Seeing all the pieces that have to come together for success.

What’s your favorite story about working with the IRC?

There were moments working one-on-one with my geometry tutee where we weren’t discussing the lesson and were just chatting. She told me about her Ramadan celebrations, about what she was doing for Spring Break or Halloween. It’s exciting and fun to hear what the kids are doing, to hear what’s happening in their schools, to watch them experience very pure milestones as kids.

Interested in volunteering? Find your local field office and volunteer coordinator here.