This semester I have been interning at the Center for Child Protection as a grant writer. The Center works with children who have experienced abuse, neglect, or witnessed a violence crime. Collaborating with APD, CPS, and the DA, the Center does forensic interviews with kids, so they only have to tell their story once, reducing trauma.
As I grant writer, I work with the Grants Manager and the Director of Strategy. I either work for 2-4 hours each day. Typically, I log onto my email and calendar to see what I have to do that day. Every month I work on 3-4 grants, as well as researching potential grant opportunities or editing other proposals that the Grant Manager finished.
My position is online, partly due to COVID, partly for convenience, and it is interesting how much your experience changes when you are online instead of in-person. I think most aspects change, especially if you are starting somewhere new. For example, just talking to people. If you are in the office, you are around people all the time, even if you are doing your own work, so you get to know them through exposure. When you work from home, it takes much more effort to get to know co-workers or my boss – at least for me.
This internship is also very educational. All interns and volunteers have to attend training before they start working at the Center, and it is an all-day training on the Center and child abuse and prevention in general. Also, while writing grants and interacting with the other departments, you learn a lot about the Center and everything that makes it work – and there’s a lot.
One thing that was really interesting – and shows just how much attention to detail the Center puts into caring for the kids who walk through the doors – is how the Center is arranged. I went for a tour to meet my boss and see the Center, and they mentioned the layout was purposeful. In the old building, they had the therapy rooms, exam rooms, and interview rooms on the first floor, and admin on the second. This meant that everyone on the first floor could hear all the movement from above, which was distracting for the kids while they were already using a lot of effort in an interview. So, when the Center was able to relocate to the current building, they purposefully put all program rooms on the top floor to avoid the noise. This is a small decision, something that you might not otherwise think of, but every little thing is though through at the Center.
— Written by Zoe Padelopoulos
Zoe,
Your internship opportunity sounds really interesting! It truly is amazing the small changes they are making to make this a better experience for the kids. Do you interact with them at all in your position?
Hello, It is super cool to hear that your organization works with children, and really puts a lot of effort into giving them the most comfortable experience possible, in often tough and anxiety inducing situations. It is also good that your internship provided training in working with kids who have experienced child abuse, and the prevention of it. These seem like valuable and important skills that transcend the workplace.