Stephanie is a rising Senior and is interning in Brooklyn, New York at Ms. Foundation for Women, which delivers strategic grants, capacity building, and leadership development to 150 grassroots organizations around the country.
I knew that Ms. Foundation for Women is a leading social justice foundation and delivers strategic grants and leadership development to 150 grassroots and national advocacy organizations throughout the country. I knew tha
t the dress code was “business casual”. I knew I would be joining the communications team. But that was all I knew.
I had no idea what to expect as I rode up the elevator to the top of the Metrotech Center. My ears popped. I was on the 26th floor. I smoothed out the wrinkles in my skirt, and tried to look as professional as possible. I was surprised when I approached the large, glass doors and my visions of a traditional corporate office vanished. I should’ve known, Ms. Foundation is hardly traditional in its programmatic area’s, why should the office follow traditional patterns either. Much of the building was glass, even office doors were clear, open, and inviting. The view was spectacular; the Brooklyn Bridge, the Empire State Building, the Hudson River, all available in a panoramic sweep of the windows.
As I was introduced to each member of the staff, I was pleasantly surprised at the diversity within the office. Then, when I was assigned my first project, I began to realize just what I had gotten myself into. My task, both personally and professionally, is to realize the issues of Women and Economy, Women and Violence, and Women and Health while taking into account disparities and differences across race, class, immigration status, and region. It is both a daunting and exciting task.
My history and interest in Women’s issues is brief, and I am slowly realizing, limited and naive as well. My focus before was solely on women. Never before had I truly understood the implications of these other elements, and as I began my research and the statistics became thesis, I started to see just how sheltered and narrow my life in Durham is. I had always prided myself on being both adaptable and comfortable when greeted by diversity. My family had moved my Junior year in high school from rural, “white bubble”, middle of no where Maryland, to the multi-cultured melting pot of Durham and Duke University. But how much had I really taken advantage of my new surroundings? At school and home, I have built myself a network of likeminded individuals, who share similar experiences, passions, and problems. I am beginning to see how unaware I had been, and I realized I knew even less than I had previously thought.
I really like how you reflected on your anxiety and anticipation as you approached your first day at Ms. Foundation. Your humility in recognizing how much you have to learn about your field of study and its application to the issues you will tackle is refreshing and a sign of how much you’ve learned already. I look forward to more of your posts as you continue your journey this summer.
Dear Stephanie,
I am impressed by how much learning and growing your have done since arriving in New York! It does seem that your colleagues this summer will help facilitate this process of intellectual and personal growth. The issues you will be researching are crucial and yet incredibly broad. I look forward to reading how you have come to ground them in concrete life experiences and data. I also look forward to reading about how this learning informs your understanding of yourself as a an agent of social change.
This post is clear, well-structured, and thoughtful, except that the details of your assignment are undefined. The topics are broad and interconnected, and the issues they present are wide-ranging. Do you have specific tasks or subtopics that can serve as a focus? Is there an end product you’re expected to deliver? It will be interesting to follow your progress this summer.
I appreciated your honest observations about your first moments approaching your new job. I was curious about your description of the office and how that seemed to differ from your impression of what a the organization’s space might look like. What initial impression did you have of a “traditional corporate office”? Did the panoramic views and sleek decor change your impression about the organization and work that goes on there?
Stephanie, I enjoyed your candid description of your “first impression” of the Ms. Foundation – their office, the team and your initial thoughts on your work for the summer. I look forward to reading how your observations and insights evolve and deepen over the summer as you grow to know the organization, its people and mission in more depth. It will be interesting to see how your perceptions might change – or who knows, perhaps stay the same! And since “first impressions” go both ways, I am curious what you imagine the Ms. Foundation might write as its first impression of you?
Stephanie-
I am sure that you have heard that life is a learning process. We never quite seem to know everything that we thought we did — whether we are just graduating from college, starting our fist job, moving to a new city, buying our first house, having our first child, etc.. But, we take the skills that we have and we go from there. Your interest in learning more about people and their various life experiences will certainly take you far. I look forward to hearing more about your experiences as your summer progresses.
I really enjoyed reading your post and am glad you are approaching the summer and this experience with self-awareness and an open-mind. You may just find that those likeminded individuals come from diverse places, backgrounds and experiences, and that those you previously assumed were “like” are actually quite different! And that those differences can also be a learning, idea-expanding experiences. But the first step is opening your eyes and embracing the opportunity around you which your post makes clear that you are doing. Enjoy your summer and I look forward to reading more.