Aleta Wills

Agency: Our Family Services

Term: Spring - 2002

I am doing my internship at Our Town Family Center. Our Town is an agency in Tucson that caters to the needs of the community. They offer a variety of services based on the needs of their diverse population. The program that I am interning at is called the Common Unity Program (CUP).

Common Unity offers a community housing program for single mothers ages 18-21 who are at risk for homelessness. These mothers and their children are offered subsidized housing, life skills and parenting classes, and educational assistance while in the program. I am doing my internship as an Intern Case Manager at Common Unity. The case manager's responsibilities include the direct care services of the CUP residents. I help assist the parents in obtaining their vocational, educational and parenting needs by home visits, phone contact and communication with others involved in their lives.

Last semester I was getting bored with my classes and ready for some "real world" experience, so I applied to the internship program at U of A. Upon acceptance from the internship program at the University, I interviewed with Our Town for a position in the Family Builders program. However, after I finished the required training, I was much more interested in the CUP program and decided to be placed there. Already I have a great relationship with the clients and their children, and am very happy with my decision. I am so happy that I have decided to continue working there through the summer break.

This internship has already taught me a lot, more than all of my classes combined in the last two years. I have everyday, hands on contact with the residents and am able to actually assist them in reaching their goals, whether it be helping them fill out paperwork or simply babysitting their children for an hour while they run some errands.

University of Arizona | College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
School of Family and Consumer Sciences | Family Studies and Human Development

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