When I started in the Master of Human Services Administration program, I was very

excited about the opportunity to intern in a human services organization, and summer 2020 took

what seemed like forever to begin. Summer 2020 is finally here and it is time to begin my

internship experience, but my experience did no take the traditional route where one would go

into the organization ever so often to contribute time and gain valuable experience. The

Coronavirus Disease 2019, better known as covid-19 has taken full effect globally by summer

2020 and organizations have had to seek unconventional ways to conduct business. The human

services and non-profit arena were not been spared either, and what should have been a hands on

experience suddenly turned into a virtual one. Due to existing medical conditions that classified

me as a high-risk individual I was not allowed to be over-exposed to individuals other than my

immediate family. Because of the pandemic I was given the opportunity to conduct a research on

the Domestic Violence Program offered by Child Inc.

Child Inc. offers support services to victims of domestic abuse and a detailed examination

of the different services offered by the organization and the population that is being served was

conducted. Because Child Inc. is a non-profit organization, social policies affect how the

organization operates and the polices where reviewed with the program director. By the end of

the third week in my internship program, I learned that human services organizations are often

times directly affected by social policies.

As the weeks progressed, I dived further into the mission, vision and values of the agency

and also the ethical considerations of the organization. Revision of the ethical principles further

reinforced that the primary mission of the human service professional is to enhance human well-

being while respecting the dignity and welfare of all people, promoting self-determination,

honoring cultural diversity, advocating for social justice, and acting with integrity, honesty,
genuineness and objectivity (www.nationalhumanservices.org). As I approached the midway

mark of the program it was important to access the structure of the organization, and how the

different areas of the organization supported this structured. While accessing the structure, focus

was given to the services provided by human resources. During this assessment I realized how

important it is for human resources to get the right individuals on board who will work

cohesively within their capacity to fulfill the goals and vision of the organization. Human

element is the most fundamental factor that contribute to an organization’s performance, and

employees are the organization’s most important asset.

With the current state of pandemic that is looping across the country, communication

across the different levels of the organization has definitely taken an unconventional turn. Face-

to-Face meeting have been replaced with zoom meetings and communicating by email has

increased. My communication and method of gathering information from the organization has

been through email interview, telephone conversations and reviewing the organization’s website.

While evaluating the agency I learned how valuable funding is to agency or any non-profit

organization for that matter.

It was made known to me that the vast majority of nonprofit social service organizations

are supported at least partly by public funds, and many are highly reliant on those public sources

of revenue. It was observed that while receiving grants, it is important for the organization to

participate in philanthropic efforts to retain connection with the community and stakeholders. I

learned how important it is for the agency to be positioned correctly in the community, because

no one organization can provide all the services that a client needs, therefore it is paramount that

the organization creates and maintain healthy partnerships. Effective collaboration allows for

internal and external parties to deliver new and extensive services that will fill the service gap
that exist for clients. As the final week approaches, we examined how social media can be used

to establish the agency’s mission and bring awareness to programs. I learned how important it is

for non-profit organizations to utilize social media platforms to remain connected to donors, to

engage its followers on fundraising campaigns, and other new initiatives that directly affect the

agency, and to also remain connected to the community. As I finally approach this momentous

ending, it did not come without its fair share of challenges but it has allowed me to better

understand the daily functioning of a non-profit agency and what it takes to operate one

effectively.