Bea Chihak was introduced to Rise through Cow Tipping Press, a local organization that works to amplify the voices of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities through creative writing. A spring graduate of Macalester College in St. Paul, Bea majored in history, with a concentration on law and social justice, and creative writing.

“I was very excited to intern with such a prominent agency and fortunate to work with Rise’s amazing grants manager, Nicole Conti,” said Bea. “I wrote, co-wrote, and helped organize grants, as well as worked on other projects like Rise’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion newsletter. I also created a list of prospective small family foundations for Rise to apply for grants from.”

Bea’s background and involvement in the social justice side of disability work, as well as her knowledge of the history of the disability rights movement, was of great benefit in her projects.

“The most rewarding part of my internship was getting to know how Rise works as an organization. I was truly impressed by the vast variety of programs Rise offers, and the diversity of its communities and the people it serves.”

This fall, Bea will be working fulltime as a direct service professional (DSP) at one of Lutheran Social Services’ group homes.

“I am super excited to learn more about the day-to-day, on-the-ground work of disability services and become more involved in the communities of people with disabilities across the Twin Cities more broadly. I am incredibly passionate about disability justice, which for me is about a lifetime of activism around disability.”