Four students will work with non-profit groups this summer, thanks to support from various funds and foundations. The students, their funding and work are:
Student: Tatum Weishaupt ’09
Major: Biology
Funding: Class of 1973 Community Service Internship Endowed Fund; supported by the in honor of the 35th class reunion
Internship: Community Hospice of Schenectady.
Responsibilities: Weishaupt, who is preparing for a career in medicine, will provide respite care and emotional support to terminally ill patients and families. She also will help the Volunteer Office on outreach initiatives and new volunteer training.
Student: Shannon Packer’09
Major: Biology/Classics
Funding: Roger H. Hull Community Service Summer Endowed Internship;supported by the Board of Trustees
Internship: Joan Nicole Prince Home; Glenville, N.Y.
Responsibilities: Packer will provide direct patient care to terminally ill residents at the home, part of Schenectady Community Home, Inc. Offering companionship and emotional support, she also will give patients a safe and comfortable environment during their final months of life. She will have the opportunity to participate in community outreach and fundraising efforts, as well.
Student: Andrew Mak’10
Funding: Dr. Scholl Foundation
Major: Chemistry/Sociology; LIM
Internship: New York State Department of Health, Albany
Responsibilities: Working in the Patient Safety Center, Mak will help develop a marketing plan and implement the “Just Ask!” program, a national health literacy effort designed by the Society of Health Systems Pharmacists to educate hospital patients about the safe and effective use of their medications. He also will develop a survey for hospital patients to assess the effectiveness of the program and report on the findings. He will form collaborative partnerships with hospitals, government and private sector health organizations as New York is the first state to implement this program.
Student: Lisa Crescenzo ’10
Major: Art History major
Funding: Biology major
Internship: Heckscher Museum of Art, Huntington, N.Y.
Responsibilities: Crescenzo’s contributions to this community-focused museum will range from digitization and archiving, conservation planning and collections management to exhibition installation. During the Museum’s renovation and transformation, she will contribute to creating more accessibility of the collections through state-of-the-art photography for inclusion in a Web-based database searchable from off-site. She also will evaluate objects for conservation and assist with relocation of the vast permanent collection and installation of traveling exhibits.
Members of the Funded Summer Internship Selection Committee included Sociology Professor Melinda Goldner, Kenney Community Center Director Angela Blair and Becker Career Center Associate Director of Internship Programs Rochelle Caruso.