Hi everyone! It’s crazy that this program is almost over. Week by week you get even more comfortable with your host site as you have more conversations and are brought in on more projects. It truly feels like I’m a part of the team, we have team discussions on future events and someone will say “Oh Kennedy can do this or be a part of this” until they realize I will be gone by then. The team at The Women’s Fund has been incredibly welcoming and has let me know how the organization runs and what future plans are. The conversations about career trajectory and nonprofits and personal conversations about family, friends, pop culture, and politics were so meaningful. Through these 10 weeks, I’ve truly gotten to know the team and collaborated on projects throughout the programs.

At this point, I am making sure all my projects are done or at a place for someone to pick them up. The Donor Survey is completed and is ready to be sent out for the date they have planned. StoryCorps rollout on social media is happening next week. My main projects have come to a close as the program is. This week had an overwhelming theme of weirdness. It feels weird for the program to be ending. It feels weird to be a post-grad. It just feels so odd to not be in school and now looking for full-time job opportunities. As a student, you often think about this time in life, but it feels weird to be living it. I’m extremely grateful for the opportunities I’ve had and will continue to have. Life is truly a journey that I take on day by day. Taking things day by day has reconstructed my thinking to not put time limits on everything. I am an extreme planner who likes to put deadlines on everything. Taking one step at a time relieves the pressure of needing an answer.

This program has affirmed my want to work in the non-profit space and changed the way I approach various opportunities that further my career. I have been challenged to think about my “why”, which has clarified a series of unknowns for myself.

Hope everyone had a great week

See y’all in the next one!

Kennedy Smith