In January, when I first started my internship at the Mansfield Youth Services Bureau, I was unsure of whether or not it was the type of placement I was in search of. When I first reached out to the Director of Youth Services, Pat Michalak, it was with the intention that I would be placed in a position where I could gain hands-on experience working with youth, ages 18 and under, but that was not what was available to me at the time. The bureau’s two initiatives that allow for direct involvement with youth, Big Friends and COPE, had already been filled at the beginning of the school year. However, Pat was so intrigued by my e-mail of inquiry that she did not wish to lose me as an intern.
After about a month of trying to generate a spot for …show more content…
As of right now, we have two amazing high school seniors interviewing residents in their homes. It has been left up to the interviewee what they wish to discuss and, out of the five interviews that have been completed thus far, there has been no two stories that have been alike. One woman discussed the adoption of her daughter who was a different race then she while another discussed her time travelling the nation, including the time she spent living in Alaska with her family. While I am usually unable to be present at the interviews due to conflicting work and class schedules, I have had the opportunity to listen to the voice-recorded interviews as I am transcribing them. While I am facilitating most of the project from behind the scenes, Pat and I have discussed the opportunity for me to perform an interview on my own so that I can gain the same communication experiences that these two students are. Looking back, I am thankful that I did not settle for Pat’s original offer to assist with the newsletter and the newspaper because, if I had done so, I would not have had the opportunity to be a part of such an amazing initiative that I helped to conceptualize and
After about a month of trying to generate a spot for …show more content…
As of right now, we have two amazing high school seniors interviewing residents in their homes. It has been left up to the interviewee what they wish to discuss and, out of the five interviews that have been completed thus far, there has been no two stories that have been alike. One woman discussed the adoption of her daughter who was a different race then she while another discussed her time travelling the nation, including the time she spent living in Alaska with her family. While I am usually unable to be present at the interviews due to conflicting work and class schedules, I have had the opportunity to listen to the voice-recorded interviews as I am transcribing them. While I am facilitating most of the project from behind the scenes, Pat and I have discussed the opportunity for me to perform an interview on my own so that I can gain the same communication experiences that these two students are. Looking back, I am thankful that I did not settle for Pat’s original offer to assist with the newsletter and the newspaper because, if I had done so, I would not have had the opportunity to be a part of such an amazing initiative that I helped to conceptualize and