UA Little Rock and Seis Puentes Partner to Empower Hispanic Community through Student Internships

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has partnered with Seis Puentes, a North Little Rock-based nonprofit, to provide paid internships that allow students to put their classroom learning into practice while serving the Hispanic community in Central Arkansas.

Through the partnership, Spanish majors, minors, and certificate students at UA Little Rock are placed at Seis Puentes, where they assist with English and Spanish language classes, food drives, youth programs, and health and legal workshops. Interns typically work 80 to 100 hours during the semester and receive a $1,600 stipend through University Career Services.

“This internship demonstrates that learning a language is more than a resume builder. It bridges gaps and connects people in meaningful ways,” said Dr. Rex Wilkins, assistant professor of Spanish at UA Little Rock. “This has become a model for what experiential learning should look like: students using their education to directly serve the community.”

Since launching in spring 2025, the program has grown from four interns to six this fall, providing a total of 14 student internships over three semesters. Interns have translated materials for city and law enforcement agencies, taught language classes, assisted patients in medical clinics, organized food drives, and helped run youth camps.

“Seis Puentes is a small nonprofit with only one full-time employee,” said Raul Fernandez, a member of the organization’s board of directors. “Having interns really strengthens our work by bringing more hands on deck to do anything from administrative work to client services to managing our social media.”

Fernandez, a UA Little Rock mass communication graduate, said his own internship experience at KUAR, a station of Little Rock Public Radio, gave him an appreciation for the value of experiential learning.

“I had an internship at KUAR while I was in school, and I learned a lot from it. It was one of the best experiences I ever had,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to give that kind of real work experience back to these students. The interns definitely add to their resumes by doing professional and community work.”

Students describe the program as transformative. Lizbeth Renteria, a junior majoring in social work from Little Rock who interned over the summer, said the program strengthened her calling to help others.

“I worked at a youth summer camp and taught English as a second language,” she said. “It showed me how much of an impact consistent support can make. Translating for families reminded me how language can divide us but also connect us. This experience shaped me as a future community leader.”

Ragen Hodge, a senior biology major with a pre-med focus and a student-athlete, used her Spanish skills to translate for patients at a medical clinic in Oklahoma. For the first time, she accompanied Spanish-speaking patients through the complexities of the U.S. healthcare system.

By the end of the summer, she had guided dozens of patients through everything from filling out paperwork to talking with doctors about diagnoses to picking up prescriptions at the pharmacy. One patient, a woman suffering from lupus and kidney failure, especially touched her.

“I was nervous at first, but when I met her and her family, that nervousness disappeared,” Hodge said. “I stayed with her through the entire process, helped entertain her children while she waited, and made sure she understood her care. As they were leaving, her little girl turned around and blew me a kiss. I almost cried. That moment showed me the power of language and compassion in healthcare.”

Eric Brown, executive director of Seis Puentes, said the interns have brought new energy and expanded the nonprofit’s impact.

“These students dedicate themselves to community service, and their contributions make a real difference in the lives of our neighbors,” he said. “This program bridges the university and the community in powerful ways. It’s relatively new, but it’s already making an impact. I’m excited to see it grow and to give students long-term resources that will help them in their professional and personal journeys.”

Michelle Marshall, career specialist with UA Little Rock University Career Services, emphasized the professional benefits students gain by completing internships.

“By funding internships like this, we’re able to provide access for students who might not otherwise have these opportunities,” she said. “They gain skills, confidence, and real-world experience that will help them in their future careers.”

The program also reflects UA Little Rock’s mission to connect higher education with the community it serves.

“Our interns are ambassadors for UA Little Rock and for Arkansas,” Wilkins said. “They’re showing how language and service can transform lives.”

For Jennifer Camacho, a junior double majoring in nursing and Spanish, interning at Seis Puentes has been a life-changing experience.

“I would describe getting the opportunity to be an intern at Seis Puentes as one of the biggest highlights of my life,” Camacho said. “When I was offered the internship last December, I recall feeling as though it was an answered prayer. I saw numerous ways I could help.”

Inspired by the experience, Camacho returned this fall for a second internship. She said the lessons she’s learned go far beyond translation or tutoring.

“I learned how to listen to people who couldn’t speak for themselves, how to communicate more effectively, and how to be more outgoing and confident in what I know,” she said. “The biggest thing that my mentor, Raul Fernandez, taught me was that being bilingual is like having a superpower, which I am very lucky to have.”