Columbus Foundation Fellowship Programs

My time at CND these past two weeks has been spent helping the staff prepare for Summer Day Camp to start on the 24th. I have been assigned the task of making sure all of the binders for the counselors are made before their arrival for training next Monday. It may not be the most exciting task to be assigned to but it is imperative that it is done before next week.

I have spent many hours printing, hole-punching, stapling, and organizing and I do it because I know that if I don’t, another staff member will have to take the time out of their day to do it, which brings down the productivity of the office as a whole. In the past, CND would have the counselors spend a whole day making their own binders. This was problematic for a number of reasons: counselors lose a day of training or lesson-planning when it is dedicated to organizing binders; the copier gets jammed often due to the high volume of papers being printed at the same time; and staff have to spend hours over the weekend before camp making sure that the binders have been organized correctly.

I wanted to work at CND this summer because I wanted to work with kids. So far this summer, I haven’t seen any kids and that’s okay. I know that the work I am doing now will be important in 10 days when 250 kids show up for camp. This experience so far has reinforced many concepts I have studied in school, including how important it is to make sure your organization is working as efficiently and effectively as possible to fulfill the mission and theory of change.

With that being said, I am very excited to meet all of the kids this summer. I will get to travel around to all of the different camps throughout the city to help with data collecting. I have also been assigned as an adult floater in CND’s camps, meaning I am there to fill the gaps when the counselors need it. I have been getting to know all of the staff and I already feel like a vital part of the team/family. I’m ecstatic to get this summer started but I am not ready to watch it fly by!

This week, I have been participating—primarily—in training and orientation sessions that will prepare me for my time with the kids for the next eight weeks. During the training, the facilitators have been encouraging the staff to reflect on the academic year of programming as well as prior camps from the summer which has been tremendously helpful. To me, though, everything is still quite abstract. We speak of hypothetical campers in terms of hypothetical scenarios.

When I think of these situations, I find myself trying to conceptualize the posed scenario through the lens of kids I know—a familiar frame to make sense of the information. I am a part-time sitter when I’m not at HFF so I am often exposed to kiddos of various ages and demographics. However, out of all my years of being a camp counselor and working with children, I haven’t consistently been exposed to kids from the hub of the city. I didn’t grow up in this space either, so I know that I can’t truly understand the kids’ lived experiences. Thankfully, the expertise of the faculty makes up for my current, perhaps, clumsy skills.

In fact, my favorite part of week two has been finally getting to meet the other staff at the Center, whether it be the teachers who will inhabit the classrooms, the administrators who are in charge of planning and facilitation, or my fellow kitchen staff.  There exists a harmony of personalities that contributes to a rapport among returning crew; their dynamic excites me as I imagine the kids thrown into the mix. I can tell that they are full of love for the campers which, in my opinion, trumps any other factors relevant to the success of the program.

During the training, the training facilitators have been encouraging the staff to reflect on the academic year of programming as well as prior camps from the summer which has been tremendously helpful. To me, though, everything is still quite abstract. We speak of hypothetical campers in terms of hypothetical scenarios.

In an effort to understand the program and the backgrounds of the kids who are participating, I’ve been asking many questions and verbally organizing information. I’ve noticed that this may come off as a bit overzealous compared to the other staff participating in the trainings. (I’m a naturally zealous person, but they don’t know that about me yet.) I can’t help but voice my curiosities: What will my days look like? How many kids per class? When does camp end? What will be the extent of my exposure to kids since my tasks exist first and foremost in the cafeteria? Where do I park? Among all the questions, I am silently wondering, where do I fit in here in order to create the most meaningful impact?

In my interaction with both the campers and the staff, I’m trying to learn and navigate effective ways for me to express myself authentically in this space. I have been thinking this week about the balance between ‘being myself’ and expressing my thoughts while learning and listening to those who have the expertise and lived experiences necessary to understand the kids more aptly.

Even though I may not be able to immediately relate to some of the staff or kids attending summer program, I am reminded by a mentor that everyone—both children and adults—want to be seen, heard, valued, and loved. As long as I work towards building good relationships and respecting the differences and similarities among the big Dowd family, I just know it’s all going to work out.

COUNTDOWN TO CAMP: 3 DAYS!

After just nine days working at the GIAC, I’m surprised at how “settled in” I already feel. I finally figured out which keys unlock which doors, I’ve answered a few phone calls, and yesterday I only had to ask once where to find something! I know gaining more and more independence will be critical as the summer goes on and I navigate the GIAC’s summer camp, educational programs, board meetings, and so much more.

But before I write about how I gained confidence in my role at the GIAC this week, I also learned a lesson in taking accountability when I unfortunately missed the Fellows’ Learning Session on Nonprofit Career Paths due to no one’s fault but my own. I’m still having a hard time with this because I am fully committed to and grateful for the opportunity to be here this summer, and I recognize that missing an important session or event that other people have worked hard to put together does not send that message of commitment and gratitude. Transparency and openness are really important values of mine, and so I’ve realized that all I can do in situations like this where I messed up is to be honest, sincere, and not make that same mistake again. I’m hoping that I can grow in forgiving myself and giving myself room to be accountable throughout this summer, because this will certainly not be the last time in my life I mess up.

So, having that said, this week was full of new opportunities to see what the GIAC does in our communities. On Sunday, we hosted an art show featuring the work of a local photographer, and we had about fifty to sixty people all show up. Along with another staff member, my main role was to help serve light snacks and wine, but in doing so I had some pleasant conversations with the attendees. By the end of the show, about twenty people were all sitting in our lounge area and chatting away, and it warmed my heart to see the GIAC as a place that people can connect and re-connect.

Since Monday morning, the GIAC has been incredibly busy and I have really seen how the staff here have each other’s backs. One of our educators had her baby a month earlier than expected this week, so now we are down to five full-time staff members for the rest of the summer. Next week begins our two-week summer camp, and so everyone has been running around to get ready for that and take on some additional roles in our educator’s absence. I’ve been filling the hummingbird feeders this week because that was something she always did, and otherwise I have spent much of my spare time at the GIAC preparing for camp by searching for supplies, ordering and picking up books, planning activities, going over emergency procedures, and more.

In the midst of all the planning and organizing going on, the GIAC also hosted five educational programs this week. I got to lead an indoor scavenger hunt on Tuesday and Wednesday morning, and then I helped out with a fun game about bird migration today! It was really fun to work with different age groups and think about different ways to present the information to them, and I gained a lot of confidence in my leading and educating skills after just a few sessions. Today, I also got to help out with a Scouts of America program towards the Scouts’ achievement of their Environmental Science badges. We conducted experiments on air, soil, and water pollution while also going on a hike and a scavenger hunt. The Scouts had a lot of energy and enthusiasm, and I had a great time doing science with them!

So overall, week 2 was a busy but exciting week full of new experiences and seeing the GIAC’s impact throughout our communities and among people of all ages! I’m really looking forward to all the fun, nature-themed activities at camp next week, such as making our own suncatchers, playing a turtle conservation game, and finding as many birds as our eyes can see!

Have a great weekend, everyone! (:

Kenzie

Being approximately halfway through my second week with Big Brothers Big Sisters, I am finally beginning to settle into “the grind”. That is, the 9-5 very ADULT lifestyle. This routine feeling of getting up, making lunch, going to work, going to the gym, and going to sleep, has made me think a lot about what the next year will look like for me in a professional sense. So, I wanted to dedicate this blog post to discussing young people in the workplace, and how I see the workplace changing for young professionals.

From conversations with my peers and colleagues that also identify as young professionals, there are two main things I feel like we search for wherever we land post-college: balance and purpose.  I have had the conversation a few times with my father where he stresses the importance of hard work and dedication to his career. Not to say I don’t agree with that, but my father has talked extensively about how he comes from a generation where you have to bring your work home with you to succeed. Time in the office isn’t enough, and in order to “outperform” your colleagues for that next promotion, your career must become your life. I feel like our generation values work-life balance; being able to detach from work when you get home at 5:30 and not stressing over working long hours to get the next monthly bonus. At Big Brothers Big Sisters, they both accept and encourage vacation time to relax and decompress, and they are incredibly flexible with hours to accommodate appointments, families, etc.

The other element I believe young professionals are searching for in their first real job is purpose. Feeling valued by colleagues, and most importantly a supervisor or manager, may make or break your performance of daily tasks. People appreciate being told that they matter, that their work matters, and that they have a place and purpose within the organization. On my first day at Big Brothers Big Sisters not only was I introduced individually to the entire staff, but they also held a brief meet-and-greet with snacks. Each individual discussed their position at the organization, their favorite thing about working here, and inquired about my professional aspirations. I didn’t feel like “just an intern”, I felt like an important component of a team working toward a much more important goal.

Through this reflection of young professionals in the workplace and what we value, I have been validated that this is where I belong. Not just in this field, but with this organization surrounded by these people. I can only hope that my post-college job search leads me somewhere with these same values.

This week was the first official week of summer camp for SON Ministries; a week full of surprises, old and new faces, and adjustments. During our fellow meeting at the Columbus Foundation this week, I learned lessons from social profit leaders that perfectly align with the challenges and successes of the first week of camp. One thing that kept coming to mind, though, was the metaphor of looking at every child as a gold mine.

During our fellow meeting, we discussed the potential within each human being and the ability we have to help others reach their full potential. When I think of this potential, I think of gold; something that is highly valued and something that’s always in high demand. Within a child, the gold is there, just waiting to be mined. However, while everybody wants gold, few take the risk to mine it. It can be a dirty job – one that is tiresome, challenging, and maybe sometimes defeat. I’ve never personally mined gold, but I’ve worked with children and can say that sometimes it can be the same. But, the feeling you have when you see a child reach their full potential far outweighs any challenges you may have faced. When you see this, you know you have truly struck gold. Only a few days into camp, I’ve already seen many of my peers strike gold. Maybe it was forming a relationship with a shy child and encouraging them to express themselves in whatever way they feel comfortable. Or, maybe it was encouraging a teen intern to try out for the basketball team. Whatever that gold may be,we can only do our best to find it and help bring it out in the children we serve.

In only a short time, I’ve already seen so much potential. Something that Dr. Lomax said in our fellow meeting made me think about how we view potential and power. It is not our job to give people power or potential – they already have it. It is simply are job to show someone that these things are already within them, as cliche as it may sound. Like gold, potential and power are already there, ready to be mined and refined.

As my second week of this fellowship comes to a close, I am overwhelmed with admiration of the volunteers that make Ohio Wildlife Center function. All of the wildlife camp counselors, most of the education staff, and the animal care staff in the Wildlife Hospital and Education Center are all volunteers that care about Ohio’s wildlife and the center’s mission. This is a small organization and it would not be successful without the amazing work and dedication the volunteers bring every day.

Another person that I have come to greatly admire since my first day is one of the veterinary technicians that runs the Wildlife Hospital, Becky Drown. The Wildlife Hospital is incredibly small and in the basement of a companion animal vet’s office. With rooms and cages of wild animals being cared for by hospital staff and constant new admissions being brought in by the public, Becky handles the chaos of the hospital with grace and calmness as she makes sure each animal receives the care it needs either from her or the hospital volunteers. She explains everything in great detail so that everyone can be successful. The Wildlife Hospital takes in over 5,000 animals every year, many which are orphaned baby animals that need round-the-clock care. Many volunteers spend hours at the hospital, and even take some of the animals to their home to continue caring for them after-hours. Here is Becky pictured examining a fox kit patient that was brought into the Wildlife Hospital.

Also under the theme of admiration, I was able to attend a fundraiser on Thursday this week where all of the money raised was donated to Ohio Wildlife Center. The generosity of the community was humbling because the work that is done here would not get done without the generous donations of the community.

When our fellowship cohort met this week, I had a hard time connecting a lot of the lessons to my experience this summer as Ohio Wildlife Center has an animal focused mission. But after talking about leadership and what makes a good leader, I see many of those traits in the staff and volunteers here. They are selfless, helpful and welcoming. They care for themselves, the animals, and colleagues during tough times and decisions and I am very thankful to be working for this organization for the summer.

Here are a few (very cute) pictures I captured this week:

Today, I got to attend the Franklin County Community Agency Networking Meeting hosted by Buckeye Health Plan, and I will always be surprised at the magnitude of social services and public health nonprofits located in Columbus Ohio. It was a full house, and the list we received of the other organizations there was very long. This also shows the amount of need in the communities in central Ohio.

Meeting these needs seem daunting; the meeting talked a lot about the social determinants of health, which are the social and economic differences that contribute to differences in health. As a Public Health major at OSU, it was great to be able to apply a concept that is talked a lot about in my classes to this Fellowship. While I am primarily working with low-income families to connect them to affordable dental care without insurance, it is also important to recognize the underlying reasons that they are low income.

I really learned how important networking is in this line of work; most organizations only have the capacity to address one social problem, but the reality is that fixing one thing will not necessarily fix them all. Being able to partner with an organization providing services that are different but still important to the families using your organization is a more well-rounded way to participate in outreach and service.

I am very grateful to be able to experience meetings like these; the more I interact with the people at KidSMILES and immerse myself in their work, the more excited I get for my future. Something someone said at this meeting stuck out to me, “We are doing the dirty work, but we’re the type of people that love it”. I think working in non-profits is difficult for an array of reasons, but the impact they can have make it all worth it.

Welcome to the beginning of my blog!

My name is Ladan Barnes and I am a 2019 Summer Fellow with the Columbus Foundation. During my time as a fellow, I will be stationed at the Non Profit,  Lower Lights Ministries. Lower Lights Ministries offers a plethora of resources and opportunities for our community here in Columbus. They serve our most at-risk populations and help them navigate their way to a healthier lifestyle by combating emotional and physical poverty. This is done by the many programs offered by Lower Lights Ministries. The non-profit provides programs for youth, low-income families, recovering addicts, and female ex-offenders. Many of the programs also provide housing in order to provide a safe space to learn and recover.

Personally, I could not have asked for a better site. As a recent graduate of Otterbein University, in a Pre-Med Public Health Education Major background, I am familiar with their cause. Back in April, I passed my CHES exam and now I am a Certified Health Education Specialist. This certification coupled with my experience with prevention workshops and programs helps prepare me for my job at Lower Lights Ministries. At the organization, I will be a summer camp counselor and educator in their Bright Lights Summer Camp program. My focus is to promote social emotional learning and addiction prevention skill sets.

During my first week, I went to training classes and attended an ADAMH meeting in order to prepare for my summer students. Next week, I have planned to meet up with an on-site recovery center coach at Lower Lights Ministries to explore more evidence-based addiction prevention methods. I look forward to learning more from Lower Lights Ministries and tailoring the experience for the children at Bright Lights Summer Camp.

Lastly, I was told a meaningful story behind the name of my organization. In short, ‘lower lights’ represents the lower lights that are needed in order to successfully guide and dock a boat sailing in the water. At the organization we all do our best to act as the lower lights for our community.

See you next week!

Ladan Barnes

Hi! I’m Kelsey and my internship this summer is with the Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center in Worthington, Ohio. I’ll be spending the coming weeks organizing, planning, and assisting the MAC’s summer youth camps, where kids from around the area come to learn about and develop a love for all the fine arts. 

I spent my first week at the MAC as a counselor for Camp Creativity. I had a group of eleven 10-year-olds (go Red Team!), and I led them around as they got to experience painting, drawing, sculpting, critiquing art, dancing, and acting, mostly for the first time. We also focused on building a language around the fine arts so they would find it easier to talk about. The central part of this was teaching them how to kindly say that they might not like something, which they could do by giving a reason and still acknowledging that the artwork may have taken a lot of time and effort. I found it very meaningful that I began my time at the MAC with a strong reminder of why this placement was my top choice. What I love most is advocating for the arts, and this week was a hands-on opportunity for me to do exactly that. Fostering a love of the arts must begin at a young age, and it was my privilege to help a group of kids discover that passion early.  

My favorite parts of every day happened when I had the chance to sit down with my campers and work on the projects with them. As much as I love doing my own arts and crafts, listening to a young camper talk about why they’re having fun and letting them explain their own ideas really allowed me to feel like I was giving back to my community. Thanks to one of my campers, I can now confidently say that I’m well versed in the pros and cons of a city made of floating islands. When I was young, there were countless people (mostly my parents) who listened to me and guided me through the arts so I could develop my passions. The only real way I can thank them is to pay it forward.  

There were some challenges along the way, like when we had a long discussion about using paint on their projects instead of on the tables. There always will be challenges when working with young campers, though, and seeing how excited they were to continue working on their project (sometimes at the cost of being late to their pool time) was beyond rewarding. After a week’s worth of hard work and creative thinking, I’m ready to tackle the projects that lay ahead of me this summer.  

Hello! My name is Soncerrae Davis and I am a recent graduate of The Ohio State University with a B.A. in Arts Management. I will be spending my summer this year working for Community for New Direction in their Youth Summer Day Camps. CND’s mission is to empower individuals to achieve their potential through innovative programs and positive relationships. Their primary purpose is to prevent the use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, as well as violence in youth served by their programs.

So why is someone like me, who studied to work with artists, spending my summer working with kids in a summer camp? I have been asked this question more than once during my first week working here. During my time at OSU, I had countless internships and jobs in the arts in Columbus that I received priceless experiences from. When I heard about this fellowship, I was tempted to apply to work at the arts center but I thought to myself, “what is something new I can gain from working at another arts center?” and I was struggling to find answers.

When I discovered CND and explored their organization, I realized that this was my opportunity to take everything I know about helping creatives and put it into something that I have always had love for: children. I am so blessed that the folks at CND and The Columbus Foundation have given me this opportunity to work so closely with our at-risk youth here in Columbus.

All children deserve to live full, happy, and healthy lives. It is my personal belief that the arts can help anyone regardless of the situation. CND is a prominent entity in Columbus making a real impact on the lives of youth here in Columbus and I can say that I am so excited to go to work every morning because I know my work makes a real difference. I cannot wait to see what the rest of this summer has in store for me at CND.