 |
 |
|
||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Icyf < Service_learning < Students < Internship < Meet_the_interns < Intern_stories < | |||||||
Intern Stories
Nate MarshallAgency: La Paloma Family ServicesTerm: Fall - 2002
|
 |
| I am doing my internship at La Paloma Family Service's Diamondback independent living girls group home. La Paloma serves adolescents in a group care setting. My main responsibility is to provide our clients a nurturing environment in which to build positive relationships with myself and their peers that enhance the development of personal skills. I also facilitate a goals group and co-facilitate a community group. I had already been working at the group home when I decided to do this internship; I wanted to participate in the internship to challenge me to become more involved with our agency.
My career plan after graduation is to pursue a Masters Degree in counseling and become an individual and couples counselor. When I started my job, I thought that I wanted to work with children directly. Through the course of my internship I have come to realize that, while I still enjoy working with children, I believe one of the best ways to serve children is to attempt to better their home environment. This is why I want to be a couple's counselor. By giving couples a constructive way to work through problems and issues, I can hopefully improve the home environment for children. The main thing that I have learned through this internship is that I have developed the skill of patience. Many times our clients require multiple cues to do what is expected and they require a lot of patience. I have also discovered that I work well under pressure. There are things like house cleanliness that need to be attended to simultaneously while other clients may be escalated. It is oftentimes a balancing act, and I have learned to prioritize and have thus far managed to do well in such circumstances. Another valuable thing that this job has taught me has been crisis intervention techniques. In the training I attended, they taught us verbal and physical strategies to handle escalated clients. Fortunately, I have only had to use verbal techniques so far. I feel competent in my ability to defuse volatile situations. One of the main benefits in this job is the relationships that are built with our clients. There was one client in particular that I met while at another La Paloma group home and was able to advocate for her to be moved into the independent living home. While she was at our home, we built a trusting relationship that allowed her to better relate to her peers. She has now moved to another group home, but we have set up bi-weekly one on one meetings to discuss her progress. I would definitely recommend this internship to anyone who is contemplating participation. Even if you do not wish to eventually pursue a career in social service, it gives you invaluable experience that builds a resume. You get the opportunity to work with amazing people, both coworkers and clients. It is a challenging and exciting experience that will give you insight into a rewarding field. |
|
|
|
|
| Home
| Program
Evaluation |Research
and Outreach | Service
Learning | Getting
Involved About Us | Contact Us | Events Calendar | Site Map University
of Arizona | College
of Agriculture and Life Sciences © 2002 Institute of Children, Youth, and Families University of Arizona Family and Consumer Sciences 1110 E. South Campus Dr. PO Box 210033 Tucson, AZ 85721-0033 Phone: (520)626-4433 Fax: (520)621-3401 families@ag.arizona.edu |