Community Center : A Family Resource Center

For years, it had been my goal to work at a nonprofit. I slowly worked toward this goal by obtaining my Master of Accountancy at Truman State University and doing a variety of volunteer work along the way. I won the Sister Ann Kessler annual community service scholarship my junior year of undergraduate school for volunteer and leadership work and continued to assist through the SERVE Center during graduate school.

Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the family centered services generated preventable client assignment with no definite procedures for stability (Mass & Engler, 1959; Gruber, 1973 ;as cited by Pecora, Reed-Ashcraft, & Kirk). Furthermore, Gruber (1973) established that the problem was rooted in insufficient data to make suitable decisions to address clients concerns. Likewise, Franshel & Shinn (1978; as cited by Pecora, Reed-Ashcraft, & Kirk) added that this resulted in one of many issues such as, family centered services encouraging separation between blood relatives by restricting contact.

Additionally, I volunteered with community programs focused on alleviating health care issues. For example, I worked with an organization that promotes community discourse on the unique, hidden health challenges of homeless and low-income women and girls. Not long after that, I volunteered at two events,

Between my freshman and sophomore year of college I completed a 450 hour internship at All Children’s Hospital. This internship although it was mainly administrative showed me a side of hospitals that most people don’t see. I was able to see the behind-the-scenes of fundraising and public relations. I had first hand exposure to the world of fundraising for an organization that relies on fundraising. Two years later completed my bachelors of science in general business management.

Specifically, I was able to apply many of the concepts and skills that were discussed within the MIDCM coursework in a professional setting, such as language aid, guided research, community development, proposal/grant support, youth engagement activities and education initiatives. My two primary projects throughout the summer internship were the Vulnerable Populations Project and the CYFAR Grant Program. The Vulnerable Populations Project focuses on the nine groups of youth listed above. I was tasked with researching information on each group, finding federal laws related to each specific group, and condensing the information to be posted online to the public.

There are various element that may disturb students’ attainment within the classroom that may include the students’ social forces such as the environment and family structure. The Family Resource Center (FRC) is integral because “The primary goal of these centers is to remove nonacademic barriers to learning as a means to enhance student academic success. The mission is to enhance students’ ability to succeed in school by developing and sustaining partnerships that promote early learning and successful transition to school, academic achievement and well-being, and graduation and transition into adult life”(2016) .

The agency where I am completing my internship is called Center for Family Services. This organization provides a wide range of services. I am working in their Family First program. This program is a substance abuse program just for mothers who must attend drug court or have an open case with the Division of Child Protection and Permanency. These women are ordered to complete a substance abuse program. This program serves a diverse cultural and ethnic population who may have experienced trauma in their life. Many times, trauma and post traumatic stress can lead to substance abuse.

Nursing has evolved in many ways over the years, in particular is the Florence Nightingale foundation of caring for the whole family and not just the patient. The following case study of Omid 's story: The Power of Family-Centered Care highlights the positive and negative aspects of their family’s healthcare experiences , and models of family nursing and concepts of family-centred care. By comparing the theories and models to what is currently put into practice by today’s nurses and healthcare providers a better outcome for this family is idealized.

I raised money for scholarships to camp; helping hundreds of kids come to camp that would be unable to afford it otherwise. Development of a diverse staff was important to me. So I recruited, interviewed and hired central city staff to be part of camp. This involved going to their neighborhood for interviews because they had no means of getting to camp.

I completed my internship at Saint Agnes Home, Inc (SAH) located in West Hartford Connecticut. I was assigned to single Teenage Mothers. The Saint Agnes is a non-profit program licensed group home run by the State of Connecticut Department of Children and Families for pregnant and/or parenting adolescents and their babies. The mission of the Saint Agnes program is to provide residential care and support services to single pregnant and parenting teen mothers and their babies. The Saint Agnes Home program emphasis values, respects life, and recognizes the unique dignity and optimum potential of each person served. The program is staffed by licensed clinical social workers, registered nurse, and other college prepares professionals.

The main task of my internship was to gain more experience and knowledge of our respective field. Overall, the experience proved to be both enjoyable and rewarding. During this internship I used the skills that I learned from my Medical Assistant class and used them in the real world scenarios at the hospital. Also while I there I was exposed to new experiences. Such as performing Urine test on Drug and alcohol patients. For this procedure I had to stand in the restroom with the patient's and watch them urinate into a cup. I had to stand in the restroom with the patients because in the past they try and cheat the system. For example

The situation that brought me from my first internship to the second one was frustrating and difficult. Nonetheless, it provided me with beneficial learning experiences for my career and life in general. One of the silver linings of interning at these two considerably different internship experiences was increasing my knowledge of two different types of business. The first of these areas was in the Non-Profit organization at PACS, where their mission is to empower individuals who are struggling. The nonprofit industry has always deeply interested me, and what I learned at PACS only fueled that interest. The time I spent at PACS was brief and ended abruptly. Nonetheless, I learned valuable and significant information and gained an understanding of the various business characteristics that are essential in nonprofit organizations.

I volunteer at two agencies that serve the most vulnerable populations in DC in health related capacities. My experiences have caused me to made me consider a career in non profit dentistry that serves the poor. I have served as a Community Service chair of an organization called 1867 at Howard University; coordinating community service activities for our members. I currently intern working with kids under 5 in nutrition and health where I do nutrition evaluations and lessons. It is so important to use your skills to help others. After a year of working with vulnerable populations of children and young adults in my home state I think will know for sure if this what I want to do for this full time for my whole career in healthcare.

My role as an intern was to help organise an event, a spring market or a spring fete, a fundraiser for the 5th Brunswick Scout Hall. It was an opportunity for me to put my marketing skills that I have learnt during the past years at university into practice. Having no experience working on a real project that involves the community or event management knowledge, this community-volunteering placement gave me an opportunity to explore my career field in marketing. However, I had no idea of how it would be like or what to expect, it was all new to me. The class seminars provided some background knowledge and guidance about volunteering in the community and a good overview of what to expect when working for a NFP organisation. Even though, I did not have a specific plan in my mind on how I was going to tackle this project or if I was prepared enough to take up a big responsibility like this. I thought I would take it as I go along as I always do with my other assignments. I was ready to

Following college, I moved to Portland, Oregon and looked for ways to continue developing my skills and fostering my passion for social responsibility. I started at Impact NW as an AmeriCorps member, where I served two terms helping run the AKA Science program. In my role, I managed hundreds of volunteers, wrote curriculum, and trained instructors; but above all, I learned how to work with corporate partners. Aided by corporate volunteers, our program served thousands of students each year. I quickly realized the importance of establishing meaningful, long-term relationships. Companies gave back to our community and in return we provided them a chance to hold an engaging experience for their employees. Every committed corporate team we cultivated helped us build capacity and redirect vital resources back into our program. We also encouraged volunteers to share their skills and as a result they would provide us with amazing insights. For example, one group of volunteers from Nike world headquarters helped streamline our processes by sharing ideas from their work in lean manufacturing. These experiences sparked something for me and I realized that my strengths as a creative thinker and a leader and my passion for giving back unite.