Tag: summer internship

Post 1: Summer at RepresentWomen

The organization I am working at this summer is a nonprofit called RepresentWomen. A branch of FairVote, this group does advocacy and research focused on systemic reforms that will help more women get elected to public office. I chose this field because I believe that for the United States to be a representative democracy, its government must reflect the experiences, demographics, and values of all of its people.

RepresentWomen is addressing the fact that women, and especially women of color, are underrepresented at all levels of U.S. government. Their strategy is to focus on rules and systems reforms, such as the implementation of ranked choice voting, gender quotas, and multi-member districts. RepresentWomen also does research, like the Gender Parity Index (GPI) and International Report, to track the progress of women’s representation and to figure out which reforms are most effective.

So far, I have taken on the tasks of updating and redesigning the “Women’s Representation by the Numbers” graphic and scaling it for different social media:

I also make other graphics occasionally, such as for the RepresentWomen Twitter page and for a summary/handout I compiled on the International Report.

I also post from the RepresentWomen Twitter account when I am in the office.

I also helped Cynthia, my boss, write and edit a chapter she will be contributing to a book. I wrote about the disadvantages women face when running for office that stem from sexism in the media and in campaign finance.

In celebration of the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, RepresentWomen is helping run this year’s Seneca Falls Revisited, which will feature a number of fascinating speakers and guests. I was assigned to write blog posts about a number of these individuals and will be interviewing as many of them as possible. They will be released online leading up to the convention. I have also been helping to update some of the research, including in the International Report, a report of multi-member districts, and soon the GPI.

I will be working on creating audio content in the form of a podcast, largely by interviewing members of RepresentWomen’s board, but also others. For example, I am in the process of setting up an interview with the hosts of Pantsuit Politics. I also will hopefully have the opportunity to use my editing skills to create video content.

I think my work will help further RepresentWomen’s mission by turning their messages into content that people can understand. Everyone takes in information differently, and the more ways I can show people that these reforms to our electoral systems are crucial to the United States being a representative democracy, the more people will support RepresentWomen’s cause. Progress very broadly looks like more women in government, but before we can get there we have to see districts adopting ranked choice voting, political parties and PACs changing their recruitment and funding strategies, and the introduction of gender quotas into U.S. politics. There is a lot that needs to be done, but that also means there are a lot of possible solutions at hand.

Post 1: Hope Happens Here – Beginning My Journey with Vibrant

Hope Happens Here. I didn’t truly understand the meaning of this slogan until I first stepped into the Bronx Adolescent Skills Center (ASC) of Vibrant Emotional Health. Vibrant provides services to support all people who experience mental and emotional stress in every aspect of life. In addition to Vibrant’s various programs to emotionally support the community, this organization runs the largest national suicide lifeline promoted through the song “1-800-273-8255” by Logic, a famous and talented rapper.

Underneath the umbrella of Vibrant, the Adolescent Skills Center is a home base for students ages 16-21 with emotional or behavioral issues that prevent their educational or vocational success. The clinically-trained staff at the ASC provides numerous resources to support students emotionally, mentally, and academically.

In the few weeks that I have spent as an intern at the ASC so far, my entire perception of mental health has changed. I began my journey by reading through the charts of all the current students either pursuing their high school equivalency diploma or utilizing the vocational services at the ASC in order to get a job. I learned about what seem to be the infinite diagnoses of the DSM-5, as well as the emotional distress and disadvantages of so many people my age.

Within my first week at Vibrant, I shadowed an intake interview with a young girl–almost two years younger than me–who is battling PTSD from being stabbed in what she described as a “gang retaliation” incident. There is no experience more harrowing than learning about the trauma of someone that is so similar to you, and yet, so different.

Though mental health is a concept that is difficult for anyone to master, you can imagine how difficult it must be for a young student from a low-income, high-crime neighborhood to manage their emotional trauma, academics, and career paths simultaneously. On the most basic level, students in low-income areas of New York City are not provided the same educational or vocational opportunities as students in other areas. Vibrant’s ASC battles this social injustice head-on every day.

Pictured: A mural painted in the hallway leading to the ASC office

With each morning that I step into the ASC office, I am stepping outside of my comfort zone just the right amount to encourage and inspire the ASC students as a role model, a friendly face, and a support system as a peer. My personal contribution to the fight for the prosperity of our students is advising three specific students as a peer advocate. I look forward to spending my summer learning the stories of my students and understanding how I can best encourage them to continue on their paths to success.

Mental health, as I understood previously, is a complicated concept. However, since I started my journey at the ASC, I am learning that mental illness comes in all shapes and sizes and that it can completely control–and in some instances damage–a person’s entire life. In tackling the overwhelming concept of mental health, I expect to have many uncomfortable yet inspiring experiences, and I can’t wait to share them with you.

-Lauren Lindman ’22

The Final Metamorphosis from Caterpillar to Butterfly

Jacksonville, North Carolina is home to more country music stations than all other radio stations combined, has the best fast food chain in the world, Waffle House, and is also known for its most beloved non-profit, Possumwood Acres. The two months that I spent there were filled with a million new experiences–I tasted grits for the first time, learned how to determine if a bird is dehydrated/emaciated, and saw a wild horse colony on an island. Now that my experience is quickly coming to a close I can say that I was really lucky to be exposed to the inner workings of a non-profit, the techniques necessary to take care of injured wildlife, and the “southern mentality.” It’s amazing what one person can do when they set their mind to it. Or when they get an unpaid internship and want to get as much out of the experience as they can. Either way you can’t go wrong.

Baby birds cuddle up really close to keep each other warm

Having completed a whopping 245 hours at Possumwood Acres, I am really proud to say that I learned beyond what I initially anticipated. I met all of the requirements for the “General Checklist” and went on to begin to complete the “Advanced Intern Checklist,” a fact of which I am very proud of. I am extremely satisfied with the experience I got interning at Possumwood Acres, and I can most certainly say that it helped me determine what I want to do with my future. Although I very much enjoyed my involvement in animal care (despite the stress associated with the job), I can honestly say that though I will not be continuing this specific avenue for a career, I am definitely invested in continuing my path in the environmental field. This internship has solidified my interest in protecting the environment in the many forms that that may come in. From this experience I learned that I am even more passionate about animals than I originally anticipated and that I am capable of learning a great deal in a short period of time.

A juvenile American Robin excitedly hops out of the incubator every time I open the door

For anyone interested in getting an internship, I would apply as early as possible. I managed to get this internship in early November. The earlier you start looking for internships, the more likely it is that you’ll actually get one. Employers will also be more likely to hire you for the job because the application pool is much smaller in early November and December. I would also try to narrow down your search to a specific type of internship, so you aren’t wasting your time applying for a position that you aren’t interested in. I knew that I absolutely wanted to work with animals so I bypassed anything that seemed like a glorified office worker position.

An osprey gets a physical examination by some of our experienced staff members

I think I am most proud of myself for doing something that was outside of my comfort zone because although I knew that the work would be tough, grueling, and hard at times, I also knew it would be extremely satisfying.

Sabrina Pond ’18

Reflecting on A Summer Well-Spent

Getting up to the office everyday was no small feat!

Heading into the summer, I knew that this internship would be critical for me for so many reasons — since this would be my final year at Brandeis, I knew that this could very well be my last opportunity to get my feet wet before diving right into the legal field after graduation.  Fortunately, now that the experience has come to an end, I can safely say that my time at the U.S. Attorney’s Office was a tremendous and rewarding experience that I will never forget.

I remember my first day at the office ten short weeks ago- how I needed to write myself a note in the morning so I remembered how to get into the building and up to the 6th floor (navigating the building isn’t as easy as it sounds!)  It took some time, as it always does, but with every passing week, I found myself growing more and more accustomed to my surroundings, and to my everyday tasks at the office.  After a while, I no longer needed assistance from my supervisor before beginning a new project like redacting personal information of witnesses, plaintiffs or defendants from documents for trial, or sifting through witness testimony and highlighting important points for the Assistant U.S. Attorney to use during summation.  That wasn’t the case during the first week when I needed the assistance of my Paralegal Specialist advisor to show me how to use the scanning machine or create exhibit lists — and for someone who doesn’t like asking for help, that really took me out of my comfort zone.  Nevertheless, by the end of my internship, I was the one answering others’ questions, and not asking them myself, which was fine by me.

When the summer began, and even as far back as when I applied for this internship last winter, I identified my primary learning goal as preparation for entry-level employment following graduation.  As I reflect back on my summer internship, I am happy to report that I have met my goal — I have developed tangible skills which will be applicable in every future job or academic setting that I find myself in.  I have improved my ability to synthesize information, read analytically, highlight the important points in a vast collection of documents, and of course, perform research, which will be pretty much all I do if and when I pursue a law degree.

Besides this, I have made some excellent contacts at my internship, including my co-interns, supervisors and others who I interacted with on a daily basis (including this fellow below).

On the 10th floor every afternoon, I would take time to visit a mother hawk and her newborn babies (who may be difficult to see in this picture!)

I’d like to think that every experience you have in life is defined by who you meet, and as Dan Gilbert concludes in my favorite book, Stumbling on Happiness, the best way to predict how you will feel in a given future situation is to listen to others who have been there before.  Over the course of the past ten weeks, I have gotten some priceless guidance from the aforementioned people (not hawks) about my impending job search, from how to tackle interviews to how to address potential employers in an email.

But above all else, what I got out of my summer internship was positive reinforcement from people who have been working in this field for decades that I was in the right place.  And really, that is all I could have ever asked for- confirmation of what I already suspected: I am right for this, and this is right for me.

To those out there who are interested in interning in the legal field or with the Department of Justice, I would strongly recommend that you DO something at your internship.  Do not just sit around idly watching jury trials (although once in a while those are great to observe).  There is always something you can be doing, and if there isn’t, don’t be afraid to ask for an assignment.  Everything you do will be a learning experience- you just have to do them first.

– Ricky Rosen ’14