News Archive
5/7/2009
Students make an impact on their communities
Student interns make an impact on quality of life, human rights and the environment. Read how five UNI students served their communities with help from the Robert and Yvonne Koob Fund for Student Community Engagement.
Amy Clemen
Lutheran Social Services
Major: Masters in Public Policy
Raising children from a different culture than your own can be challenging. Amy tackled that challenge by designing training materials on cultural connections. She also composed a support guide to use as a recruitment tool for foster families and for children who need homes within the community.
Amy says, "The internship was a training ground for me to become a child advocate and to provide the community with excellent foster home licensing and support."
Whitney Burger
West Des Moines Parks and Recreation
Major: Masters in Community & Leisure Services
During Whitney's internship with the West Des Moines Parks & Recreation Department, she experienced a wide variety of responsibilities. These included, customer service, recreation programming, facility management, budgeting, administrative work, park maintenance, horticulture, aquatics, and work with youth. She also worked with numerous special events within the City of West Des Moines and conducted a customer satisfaction survey at the local aquatic centers.
Whitney says, "Thanks to the Robert and Yvonne Koob Fund for Student Community Engagement, I was able to make a difference within the City of West Des Moines. I plan to continue to make a positive impact on the community where I begin my professional career in the state of Iowa."
Anne Reiter
R. J. McElroy Trust/Gold Star Award for Outstanding Teacher
Major: Youth Services
Anne coordinated all aspects of the Gold Star Award for Outstanding Teaching Program. She also participated in 12 site visits to youth agencies, attended conferences, wrote grants and attended Trust Board meetings.
"Last year a teacher told me winning the Gold Star Award was like being a ‘rock star,' said Stacy Van Gorp, executive director of R. J. McElroy Trust. "Anne's work as an intern means 460 teachers get to feel like a rock star when they read the praise that comes from over 930 nominations!"
Anne said, "I would, again, like to thank Dr. and Mrs. Koob and the committee for giving me the opportunity to receive funding to help support me while on my internship. Your consideration and generous gift has helped me in so many ways, and I will be forever grateful."
Bobbie Jo Sheridan
Together for Youth
Major: Social Work
Together for Youth partners with community agencies to empower youth to make informed decisions regarding their sexual health. Through Bobbie's internship, she visited many of these agencies, learned new interview techniques and discovered new ways to approach clients. She also planned an awareness campaign and facilitated group sessions.
Libby Duffy, Together for Youth, said, "Bobbie brought a fresh perspective and contagious energy to the multiple programs she assisted with in the community. Through her internship, we were able to offer more programming and have additional help for community events. She planned a community event for May, which is Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Month."
"This internship has helped me to not only become a better social worker, but has also has given me the opportunity to learn about myself. It's helped me to build my confidence level, and has allowed me to work on projects that I would have never had the opportunity to do without this internship."
Anna Shrad
Cool Congregations
Major: Biology
Cool Congregations is an interfaith organization that holds training workshops to help members of congregations calculate their carbon footprint and then find ways they can reduce their carbon footprint. During Anna's semester with Cool Congregations, she developed, organized, and hosted a continuing education event called "Recharge!" for members in the Cedar Valley who had previously attended a Cool Congregations Workshop.
Anna said, "Working with Cool Congregations taught me how to deal with challenges in event planning. Most importantly, my internship helped me answer the question that my friends, family, and I have been asking myself more and more for the past two and a half years--what do I want to do after school? My experience with Cool Congregations made me finally realize that what I enjoy and what is most important to me is educating others about energy efficiency and waste management."
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