Hannah Allen The experience in the cafeteria ranged from knowing how to prepare food for mealtime and

The experience in the cafeteria ranged from knowing how to prepare food for mealtime and how

KINS 4306 to quickly serve students during lunch. At one point I was informed by the cafeteria manager of

4/17/23 what exactly they do on a daily basis. Another opportunity that I was given was being introduced

Reflection Paper to FoodCorps. FoodCorps is a nationwide organization that partners with local schools to teach

students about healthy foods. For the Baldwin County school district, FoodCorps has three staff

Introduction members and one supervisor. For the three weeks I was given the chance to shadow each one and

For this spring semester, I worked as an intern with the Baldwin County School of have an idea of what each member does on a daily basis. I learned that FoodCorps do a

Nutrition, a branch of the Board of education. The staff is divided into the financial, inventory, combination of teaching a classroom and raising a garden among many other tasks. Afterwards I

wellness and FoodCorps department. All working together provide food and agricultural remained in the office for my final month doing maintenance to the Aquaponics system in the

education to the Baldwin County school district. The nutrition office serves students in green house and working in the Butterfly Garden. Along with this task, I was assigned to create

elementary, middle school, and high school level of Baldwin County. The school of nutrition’s advertisements to reach out to the community for support. I also had the opportunity to search

purpose is to ensure that every child has free access to a nutritious meal, combating food and work on grants that can broaden the project of Aquaponics and Hydroponics.

insecurities in many students' homes. Also, to try to find ways to promote healthy eating among Although my experience with the school of nutrition office was good for the most part

Baldwin County students. The school of nutrition creates new meal ideas that can introduce there were a few challenges. The challenge of working at an internship for the first time was

students to a wider variety of healthy foods. having communication and confidence. As being a person who is soft spoken and shy makes it a

challenge to speak up and express any concerns I may have to my supervisors. This also made

Description of Experiences attending meetings a challenge for me as well. Another challenge was finding a way to

As an intern with the School of Nutrition I was tasked with various roles that were in and constantly keep myself busy. This was a problem especially at the beginning of my internship as

outside the office area. At the beginning of my internship experience I first was with one of the there was sometimes little stuff for me to do. However, I still made an effort to let the office staff

staff in the financial and record books. I assisted with keeping track of inventory from shipments know that I was available if they were to need any assistance. It was also a challenge for me, at

sent to the cafeterias, invoices, and balancing numbers in the books. This experience continued the beginning of this experience, to adjust to my new schedule. As college students we are used

for the first month of being in the office. Afterward, I was given the opportunity to work within to going to class at certain times of the day and on some occasions not required to wake up early

the school cafeteria gaining first-hand experience of what it is like to work in a school cafeteria.
due to late classes. However, just like a real job, we are now required to wake up at a certain will be using computers quite often. Also, I would, at the first few weeks, ask them if they want

time and be at our sites at a certain time every day. you to work on grants. They highly appreciate interns who are constantly searching and writing

Perception and Evaluation of the Internship grants for them. In general, I would always ask questions, offer your assistance, and keep good

In general, I was not surprised or expected that the internship would reflect real aspects of communication with them. Most importantly, walk in with a smile every day.

a job such as coming to work at a certain time and completing daily assignments given by the After working in the school of nutrition office I have concluded that I would not consider

supervisor. It met my expectations of or gave me an idea of what the work world is like. a career where I am in an office setting. The moments during my internship where I was given

However, I was surprised by the office attire. I expected the staff to be required to wear a formal permission to leave office and complete task for my supervisors made me realize being confined

business suit on a daily basis, but the office attire vs business casual. As well as some just to an office is not for me. I would like a career that allows me to travel or allows plenty in and

wearing simple jeans and t-shirts on some days. Also, I did not expect the environment among out of office work. The career path I would like to take is one that allows flexibility or possibly

the staff to be family oriented, it appeared everyone had a good friendship among each other. I work that is remote.

believe my internship was open to hear any opinions or suggestions I had to make. For instance,

my supervisors were open to hear my suggestion and any ideas I had when we were in the Internship Preparedness

preparation phase of hosting school tours in the garden. The supervision from the internship site For the most part I felt I was prepared academically. I feel like my classes such as

supervisors were fair and decent. The supervisors were nice and friendly. My supervisor even at Methods of Health Promotion, Community Health, Nutrition and Health Promotion. These

times offered some advice that would help me go into the next phase of my career journey. Also, courses and many others have prepared me in understanding all aspects of Public Health. It has

I did appreciate my supervisors making a weekly chart of my schedule for the week and what prepared me for community outreach and understanding the role diversity plays within public

was expected of me. This really helped when I came into the office or prevented me from just health. My courses such as Community Health and Nutrition help me understand or how to

sitting ideally. address students who have Food Insecurities in their homes. These courses have also been

For future interns who are considering work here at the Baldwin School of Nutrition I helpful finding a grant that can be beneficial to the school of nutrition. However, I felt I was least

would recommend asking supervisors to provide a daily schedule of tasks. This can be greatly prepared for writing a formal document for a grant. I could still use some more practice in

beneficial to being prepared for the next day. I would highly recommend that future interns know writing a grant that will catch the attention of those giving grants. I feel that the School of Health

how to be creative when it comes to digital design. Interns should be familiar with how to use and Human Performance teaches courses with the knowledge needed for the real world. It has

platforms such as Google Sheets, Word Document, and Canva. As interns at this internship site
exposed us to all the aspects Public Health has to offer. However, I wish there were more hands- writing, flexibility, and teamwork. This experience has allowed me to gain insight on the

on experience for most or all the classes. community health issues and environmental health issues Baldwin County faces. The internship

with the school of nutrition worked with students of multiple age groups, genders, and different

Internship Performance economic or financial background. This experience has taught me and gave me hands on

During this internship experience I gained knowledge understanding and using experience in how to assess individuals who may from poor or low-income families. As well as

aquaculture methods such as aquaponics and hydroponics. I also learned how to perform proper how to address students who struggle with food insecurities when they come into Baldwin

maintenance on a traditional soil garden. Also, I learned more about the service industry and how County school cafeterias. I have also gained insight on the environmental health of Baldwin

these industries follow the health codes provided by the USDA. For instance, cafeteria staff must County through the project involving aquaculture. Aquaculture has been found that is more

always check the temperatures of the food they are serving for the students’ safety. beneficial in protecting the environment and effective in protecting produce from harmful

When it came to deadlines and assignments needing to be completed, I felt satisfied with the chemicals. Furthermore, the school of nutrition has given me insight on how to teach students

speed of completion and the quality of the work. The supervisors at the nutrition office were public health education and nutritional education to students. This internship has taught me the

pleased by my work and effort. importance nutrition, food access, and agriculture have on a community.

However, there are some areas that I need to improve and work on as I continue my

career path. Skill in communication and critical thinking may need some sharpening before I

pursue an actual career. Communication has for some time been a challenge to overcome due to

my quiet and shy nature. This semester and this year, I have made it one of my goals to improve

on this skill.

Personal/Professional Insights/Benefits

This internship has helped me think and consider where I want to take my career after

graduation. The impact this internship had on my personal growth exposed the fact I need to

improve on my self-confidence. Also, to be confident in the skills and knowledge I have to offer

to job sites. This internship has helped improve some skills including community outreach,