Keanu Yamanaka is a rising 3rd year student at Grinnell College studying Political Science considering Anthropology and a concentration in Statistics. He is passionate about serving communities with positive outcomes and opportunities for youth, focusing on under-resourced backgrounds and access to higher education. Keanu loves the transformative healing power of the outdoors, climbing to new heights, and taking endless risks.
Internship Placement: USDA APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service)
As a CAPAL scholar/intern, what does CAPAL mean to you?
CAPAL to me is making a deliberate choice to help bridge AANHPI disparities in public service work and allow for our voices to be heard and represented. CAPAL to me is the difference between lacking access to an opportunity and a pathway by creating a platform to hone youth voices and learn how to apply our cultural values to our professional fields.
What is an issue or topic within the AANHPI communities that you feel passionate about addressing?
I would like to reduce the cultural stigma and hesitancy to receive health care services for communities of color and the AANHPI community. Oftentimes I witness co-workers, peers, and friends who sacrifice their wellbeing or choose not to receive services due to their upbringing. I feel that it is difficult for people from the AANHPI community to make the decision of receiving help when you rarely see people who look like you that are prioritizing decisions around healthcare. When Asian support networks are often rooted in strong family or close friends, seeking outside help can be shameful. I hope to bring awareness and help change this perspective.
What are your main responsibilities at your position? What are some of your big projects?
Currently, I have all staff meetings twice a week, training meetings, shadowing personnel, and analyzing record data for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. I will be specializing in destruction forms, researching systems of the GRS for USDA APHIS and federal agencies, and data collection.
How does this internship fit with your professional and career goals?
I hope to pursue a career in public service, government, or a related field. Through my internship with CAPAL and the USDA APHIS, I am able to learn about the intersectionality between my cultural values being implemented into federal positions, what it takes to work in a governmental field, and explore pathways, all while staying true to myself. This aspect of CAPAL and the USDA APHIS has been invaluable to me to incorporate my identity into the workplace.
What does public service mean to you? What sparked your interest or desire to get involved with public service?
Public service to me is to help empower your community and encourage them to reach for opportunities that they may have not considered otherwise. Public service is to feel like all your lived experiences are now being translated into a form of helping people. It is to know yourself and know your community, and trailblaze your own path.