Executive summary
Introduction
During the spring semester of 2014, I interned with The Salvation Army Harrisburg’s Youth Programs under the supervision of Beth Johns, the Youth Programs Coordinator. The Salvation Army is a world-wide recognized non-profit organization that is committed to serving individuals and families in a variety of areas, including: family services, home and utility services, emergency services, rehabilitation, youth and education programs, Christmas assistance, church services, and much more. My internship involved working in the after school EXPLORE program that partners with Downey School in Harrisburg, that assists kids in tutoring, provides a meal, and offers a nutrition program called “Kids in the Kitchen.”
I devised three learning objectives for my internship experience. The first was to gain a clearer understanding of The Salvation Army’s after school program and involvement in Downey Elementary School in Harrisburg. I planned to achieve this goal by doing online research about the organization and school partnerships, and talking with various faculty and staff members. My second learning objective was to connect with the children and parents involved in the after school program, which was achieved by helping out at EXPLORE and learning a little bit about their community and background. My final learning objective was to develop and implement a program or event targeting parent and family engagement in The Salvation Army’s after school program and Downey school.
Work/Projects
The majority of my work and assignments were focused toward the EXPLORE program at Downey. My work days were divided into two segments where I spent half the time at The Salvation Army Harrisburg office, and the other half at the school with the students. Towards the beginning of my internship, I helped with some administrative duties, like entering student and parent information into the after school program database, grading student nutrition tests, updating The Salvation Army’s monthly newsletter, and collecting children’s books for the school’s classroom libraries. While at the after school program, I got to work first-hand with students by tutoring them and assisting in the “Kids in the Kitchen” nutrition lesson. During this lesson, we taught students about healthy nutrition and eating, and made a recipe with them daily. These tasks helped achieve my first and second learning objectives to get to know the students, The Salvation Army Youth Programs, and Downey School.
My final learning objective was met through my biggest assignment—to create an event that would help bridge the gap between the parents of the students involved in the EXPLORE program and The Salvation Army Youth Programs staff. Since the staff have little to no connection with the parents, due to many circumstances and challenges, my job was to help initiate a point of connection with the parents in hopes of encouraging interaction with the school and staff. With my site supervisor, I planned a Parent Appreciation Night where the parents and students of EXPLORE could come and enjoy a free meal, meet other parents, meet the staff of the Youth Programs, hear about the after school program, and fill out a parent survey about the program. I created a survey for the parents to provide opinions, feedback, and suggestions for The Salvation Army and Downey school.
Learning
There are many things I learned throughout my experience with the Youth Programs. When I first started at The Salvation Army, I had no idea they offered so many programs and services, so it was great for me to learn how dynamic the organization is. I learned how to relate to people in a professional setting, as well as adapt to certain relationships within the workplace that may be more or less casual than others. I got to witness the amount of time and energy it takes to lead and manage a position like Beth’s in a non-profit organization. On the technological side, I learned many skills working with Microsoft software including: Publisher for the monthly newsletters, Word for designing ads, handouts, outlines, and surveys, PowerPoint for devising the slideshows for the parent event, and Excel spreadsheet for entering data and analyzing the parent surveys.
Something I really enjoyed learning was how to guide, teach, and direct the students academically, while encouraging them in confidence and character. Before this internship, I had never tutored students or “taught” in an academic environment. This was a great opportunity for me to learn structure, how to instill appropriate disciplinary action, and relate to students on more than just an academic level. Although it required a lot of patience and care, I loved being with the students and helping them grow, even if in a small way.
Perhaps the most valuable thing I learned at my internship site is how to use my creativity and critical thinking. Before my internship, I didn’t express much confidence in the skills and gifts I have. I felt as though I was able to put my potential to the test and practice using these skills to create ads and the newsletter, as well as brainstorm ideas for the parent event. Part of this process required me to learn how to think and act for myself before asking for help. Using creativity and critical thinking also allowed me to practice more detail orientation as I devised ways to practically interact with the families in terms of convenience, appeal, and relational connection.
Future Plans
The skills that I have learned and sharpened while at my internship, as well as my own observations and interactions with staff, teachers, parents, and students, has had a great impact on how I view a professional role in the education and non-profit systems. I never really pictured myself working in a school, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to work in one for a short period of time in order to realize how important education is, especially in an at-risk environment like Harrisburg. I love working with children, so this was a great opportunity for me to feed my passion, while also developing leadership skills. Although the school system is not my first choice of a work environment, I’m able to picture what it would be like to work in a school in the future and interact with students, faculty, and families.
Observing the atmosphere of a non-profit, Christian organization has also opened my eyes to the great amount of service, work, time, and energy it takes to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable people. While I love the mission that The Salvation Army stands for and how much they strive to embody Christ in their services, I also see many of the challenges involved in working in this kind of environment, especially in a city that is broken in many ways. It’s definitely a job that requires commitment, patience, and determination. Although it’s not my favorite undertaking, I realize how important the “administrative” side of the job is, where paperwork, emailing, and grant proposals are daily tasks. I also experienced the frustration that sometimes comes with trying to partner with people or communicate with others who have a different communication style than my own. I am a very punctual person when it comes to communication and planning, so working with some people who differ in how they respond to communication or plan for an event required some patience and trust on my part. Since working for a non-profit organization has been a potential part of my future plans, I am grateful for this experience because it has helped me see what it may look like to work in this environment.
Preparation/Recommendations
As an Human Development and Family Science major, I believe that I was able to bring many valuable skills and insights from my classes and service-learning experiences to my internship. Classes such as interpersonal communication, parenting, child development, family ethnicities and human services, family resource management, and many others proved to be very valuable for my role at The Salvation Army Harrisburg. I was a little nervous to begin because this was my first internship experience, and the thought of moving towards a more professional atmosphere was a little overwhelming at first. However, I adapted well to my environment and I am very grateful to my academic department for giving me the skills, knowledge, and experience beforehand to help prepare me for this role.
I would definitely recommend this position for any other student. The type of work and tasks vary every day, which provides a lot of variety to the position. This type of structure has been beneficial for me to see both the administrative as well as the more interactive, ‘hands-on’ side of the job, which I believe is beneficial for those like me who are still trying to discern what type of job and work environment they prefer.
During the spring semester of 2014, I interned with The Salvation Army Harrisburg’s Youth Programs under the supervision of Beth Johns, the Youth Programs Coordinator. The Salvation Army is a world-wide recognized non-profit organization that is committed to serving individuals and families in a variety of areas, including: family services, home and utility services, emergency services, rehabilitation, youth and education programs, Christmas assistance, church services, and much more. My internship involved working in the after school EXPLORE program that partners with Downey School in Harrisburg, that assists kids in tutoring, provides a meal, and offers a nutrition program called “Kids in the Kitchen.”
I devised three learning objectives for my internship experience. The first was to gain a clearer understanding of The Salvation Army’s after school program and involvement in Downey Elementary School in Harrisburg. I planned to achieve this goal by doing online research about the organization and school partnerships, and talking with various faculty and staff members. My second learning objective was to connect with the children and parents involved in the after school program, which was achieved by helping out at EXPLORE and learning a little bit about their community and background. My final learning objective was to develop and implement a program or event targeting parent and family engagement in The Salvation Army’s after school program and Downey school.
Work/Projects
The majority of my work and assignments were focused toward the EXPLORE program at Downey. My work days were divided into two segments where I spent half the time at The Salvation Army Harrisburg office, and the other half at the school with the students. Towards the beginning of my internship, I helped with some administrative duties, like entering student and parent information into the after school program database, grading student nutrition tests, updating The Salvation Army’s monthly newsletter, and collecting children’s books for the school’s classroom libraries. While at the after school program, I got to work first-hand with students by tutoring them and assisting in the “Kids in the Kitchen” nutrition lesson. During this lesson, we taught students about healthy nutrition and eating, and made a recipe with them daily. These tasks helped achieve my first and second learning objectives to get to know the students, The Salvation Army Youth Programs, and Downey School.
My final learning objective was met through my biggest assignment—to create an event that would help bridge the gap between the parents of the students involved in the EXPLORE program and The Salvation Army Youth Programs staff. Since the staff have little to no connection with the parents, due to many circumstances and challenges, my job was to help initiate a point of connection with the parents in hopes of encouraging interaction with the school and staff. With my site supervisor, I planned a Parent Appreciation Night where the parents and students of EXPLORE could come and enjoy a free meal, meet other parents, meet the staff of the Youth Programs, hear about the after school program, and fill out a parent survey about the program. I created a survey for the parents to provide opinions, feedback, and suggestions for The Salvation Army and Downey school.
Learning
There are many things I learned throughout my experience with the Youth Programs. When I first started at The Salvation Army, I had no idea they offered so many programs and services, so it was great for me to learn how dynamic the organization is. I learned how to relate to people in a professional setting, as well as adapt to certain relationships within the workplace that may be more or less casual than others. I got to witness the amount of time and energy it takes to lead and manage a position like Beth’s in a non-profit organization. On the technological side, I learned many skills working with Microsoft software including: Publisher for the monthly newsletters, Word for designing ads, handouts, outlines, and surveys, PowerPoint for devising the slideshows for the parent event, and Excel spreadsheet for entering data and analyzing the parent surveys.
Something I really enjoyed learning was how to guide, teach, and direct the students academically, while encouraging them in confidence and character. Before this internship, I had never tutored students or “taught” in an academic environment. This was a great opportunity for me to learn structure, how to instill appropriate disciplinary action, and relate to students on more than just an academic level. Although it required a lot of patience and care, I loved being with the students and helping them grow, even if in a small way.
Perhaps the most valuable thing I learned at my internship site is how to use my creativity and critical thinking. Before my internship, I didn’t express much confidence in the skills and gifts I have. I felt as though I was able to put my potential to the test and practice using these skills to create ads and the newsletter, as well as brainstorm ideas for the parent event. Part of this process required me to learn how to think and act for myself before asking for help. Using creativity and critical thinking also allowed me to practice more detail orientation as I devised ways to practically interact with the families in terms of convenience, appeal, and relational connection.
Future Plans
The skills that I have learned and sharpened while at my internship, as well as my own observations and interactions with staff, teachers, parents, and students, has had a great impact on how I view a professional role in the education and non-profit systems. I never really pictured myself working in a school, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to work in one for a short period of time in order to realize how important education is, especially in an at-risk environment like Harrisburg. I love working with children, so this was a great opportunity for me to feed my passion, while also developing leadership skills. Although the school system is not my first choice of a work environment, I’m able to picture what it would be like to work in a school in the future and interact with students, faculty, and families.
Observing the atmosphere of a non-profit, Christian organization has also opened my eyes to the great amount of service, work, time, and energy it takes to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable people. While I love the mission that The Salvation Army stands for and how much they strive to embody Christ in their services, I also see many of the challenges involved in working in this kind of environment, especially in a city that is broken in many ways. It’s definitely a job that requires commitment, patience, and determination. Although it’s not my favorite undertaking, I realize how important the “administrative” side of the job is, where paperwork, emailing, and grant proposals are daily tasks. I also experienced the frustration that sometimes comes with trying to partner with people or communicate with others who have a different communication style than my own. I am a very punctual person when it comes to communication and planning, so working with some people who differ in how they respond to communication or plan for an event required some patience and trust on my part. Since working for a non-profit organization has been a potential part of my future plans, I am grateful for this experience because it has helped me see what it may look like to work in this environment.
Preparation/Recommendations
As an Human Development and Family Science major, I believe that I was able to bring many valuable skills and insights from my classes and service-learning experiences to my internship. Classes such as interpersonal communication, parenting, child development, family ethnicities and human services, family resource management, and many others proved to be very valuable for my role at The Salvation Army Harrisburg. I was a little nervous to begin because this was my first internship experience, and the thought of moving towards a more professional atmosphere was a little overwhelming at first. However, I adapted well to my environment and I am very grateful to my academic department for giving me the skills, knowledge, and experience beforehand to help prepare me for this role.
I would definitely recommend this position for any other student. The type of work and tasks vary every day, which provides a lot of variety to the position. This type of structure has been beneficial for me to see both the administrative as well as the more interactive, ‘hands-on’ side of the job, which I believe is beneficial for those like me who are still trying to discern what type of job and work environment they prefer.