The past few weeks of my life as a college senior have been filled with homework assignments, exams, projects, grants, and tax receipts. Between moving back to Tallahassee from Tampa, a funk of unproductivity, taking my senior level classes, and working on my internship for Girls on the Run, life has been quite the rollercoaster. I never imagined that I would spend my last year of undergrad, working from my couch. The pandemic has caused things to change drastically, for everyone, and especially for students. Switching to online platforms for work, as we have all had to do in the past year, has altered the way in which the world works, and it has changed the format of the internship that I am currently completing at GOTR. Everything has been moved online and that has brought upon some challenges that I wasn’t expecting with an online internship. When I was selecting the internship I wanted to complete for the Spring semester, I chose Girls on the Run for the passion and commitment that the organization shows for empowering young women in their own lives and their community. With an online format, it has been difficult to feel as connected to the organization as I had hoped, when I am not interacting with members of GOTR or the young women I was hoping to guide. It is a struggle to feel like I am doing enough to help GOTR, when compared to the high expectations I had of my performance before starting this internship.
Despite the challenges so far, I am so lucky to be able to intern for an organization such as Girls on the Run, and to experience in any way, the change that they aspire to make in the lives of young women. I am lucky to have a home to work from and to have the capabilities to connect online from my couch. I get to learn the inner-workings of a non-profit organization, which will provide me with valuable knowledge I hope to use as an International Environmental Lawyer (eventually). I am so thankful to collaborate with my amazing supervisors at GOTR, even if it is only through the screen of a phone or computer. The women that comprise Girls on the Run are some of the most inspiring and hard-working people that I have ever met and it is an honor to have this opportunity in the first place. I look forward to becoming more involved in the organization as their season of after-school virtual programs begin and I begin coaching its participants.
Until next time,
Shannyn Reigle
Comments