Carolina Garcia | CIIP 2023 Blog Portfolio
Orientation
We were challenged to explore our identities and understand how our role as a Hopkins student affects our positionality in Baltimore. This was one of the most important topics throughout orientation week and our biggest challenge will continue to persist throughout the summer to gain a better understanding of how to best support our communities. On a more personal note, orientation challenged me to get out of my comfort zone and prepare for this summer where I will be interacting and connecting with a variety of different Baltimore community members. Although it was challenging to open up to new individuals and reflection groups, I let myself be uncomfortable and learned more deeply that creating connections with communities and learning about Baltimore will not be easy and comfortable, nor should it be. Overall, the inspiring speakers and thought provoking activities have already helped me feel more prepared and ready to start this Monday. Moving forward I want to continue to be perceptive of my role and the identities I carry with me, as well as be open to everything and new opportunities. My favorite part of orientation was the scavenger hunt where I learned so much about public transportation that I was even able to travel more this weekend and get to speak with neighbors and community members. I’m especially appreciative of my peer cohort group for creating a safe environment to delve deeply into these challenging issues we’ll be presented with throughout the summer. We challenged ourselves to think more critically of our identities and connected very quickly over this, as well as our personal struggles as a student. I was able to explore all aspects of ourselves and our internships with my cohort.
Week 1
Baltimore Youth Arts works closely with the justice system and incorporates career readiness into their programs. After a week of learning about their programs, administration, and mission and values, I’ve understood more deeply the ways in which art and mentorship can heavily impact lives. The youth that the BYA works with ranges from ages 14-25 and touch on various issues in the art classes and career readiness workshops. BYA discusses resume building, conducts mock interviews, and provides various other resources that can help advance and support youth in their journeys towards the future. The lack of resources available to low-income and marginalized communities, especially youth, to learn about finances, jobs, careers, and more is a large issue affected by various other socioeconomic issues. This lack of resources and education serves as a major barrier for accessing needs and various opportunities for communities in Baltimore. It’s also important to acknowledge the power in art and artistic individuals to uplift communities and tell stories. The intersection of career and life skills with art and expression provides a safe and special journey to learn about one’s self and about life skills and tips not taught at many schools.
Week 2
Adjusting to a hybrid schedule for the month of June has been difficult. The challenging aspects of a hybrid schedule include having a harder time to manage my tasks and time efficiently. After my second week of the internship, I feel more equipped to work from home and work effectively. I communicated these challenges with my supervisor and together we worked to create a task list and agenda that can support the both of us and helps with time management. It has also been difficult to give myself grace and be ok with asking more questions than usual. My supervisor and I also discussed questions and support and they reassured me that asking questions, no matter how many, is always welcome. As I enter my third week, I will keep our conversations and advice in mind while I adjust to a hybrid schedule until July.
Week 3
A typical day of work at BYA starts with a check-in for updates and tasks with my supervisor. My typical work day will change once BYA’s summer apprenticeship program begins on July 10. Some projects I’m currently working on include updating the database through Cityspan, creating social media posts for Tuesdays and Thursdays, creating a communications schedule, and helping with various other tasks to prepare for the summer programming. The ongoing database task includes updating attendance from past programs, enrolling new and old youth into BYA’s summer group activities, and making sure every youth’s information is updated. The database project has helped me understand the whole picture of BYA and has helped me with my organization skills. My other responsibilities include communication tasks which have helped me get out of my comfort zone, explore some creative endeavors, and I’ve gotten to know BYA’s staff more closely. As I’m settling into my routine, I set my intention and goals for the week and make an effort to finish all my tasks and take initiative on other assignments or projects. Each week the tasks look different and push me to take more initiative and complete more independent work while still getting to understand BYA’s mission and values more deeply. At first, I was scared of completing independent tasks and taking the lead on some smaller tasks, but I’ve learned to appreciate these tasks which have pushed me further and are helping me prepare for future jobs and projects. The BYA team is tight-knit and full of passion. I enjoy the Wednesday staff meetings where I’ve gotten more comfortable and learn something new about the staff team and BYA as a whole. I feel very honored to work with such a fun and inspiring group of individuals for the summer.
Week 4
Both my personal and internship goals for the summer have been slowly developing and changed a little bit from the beginning of June. My overall core values and goals going into the summer have stayed the same. Those goals are pretty simple; learn with an open mind, have fun, and stay curious. This summer is very eventful and I am still learning new things every day, whether it’s about my internship, Baltimore, or my personal and career interests. Some specific goals regarding my internship are to take initiative, stay on top of tasks and assignments, and strengthen my professional skills. I feel that I am on track to meet these goals. My experiences this summer, especially regarding my internship, have exceeded my expectations. I’ve learned so many things about myself and others that I didn’t expect to learn this summer and for that I am very appreciative of the opportunity to stay in Baltimore for the summer and work alongside Baltimore Youth Arts (BYA). This upcoming week will be very busy and new for me since it begins the start of BYA’s summer programming. In order to meet my own goals and the goals set for me by BYA, I will do my best to stay present, stay on top of my tasks, and be flexible as we all work to navigate the first week of BYA’s Summer Apprenticeship Program. In order to stay on top of my tasks, I am finalizing my agenda and to-do list for the week and will communicate often to make sure I am supporting BYA effectively. I will also work on meal prepping and going to bed early since this will be my first week fully in-person. I’m excited to start the week and support the program, as well as observe how my goals are impacted this summer and evolve.
Week 5
This week was the first week of the Baltimore Youth Arts Summer Apprentice program and it was so exciting to interact with youth after preparing for a month. Throughout the week, I got closer to some of my fellow team members and discussed various topics, such as Baltimore City. I am very fond of Baltimore City and hope to stay here after graduation. In pursuit of my life goals, I hope I carry the same passion, hard work, and commitment to community that I’ve observed in Baltimore. More specifically, I’ve also learned that a non-corporate work environment works for me well and I am still able to achieve various tasks while also feeling productive and taking care of myself. This internship has helped me realize that I want my future career or future in general to align with my values and passion. Success is what I make of it and success for me is that working within my community and other communities and feeling proud of the work I get involved with. Flexibility and communication are important to me and I’ve learned that being patient, working together, and effectively communicating with one another is vital for me in my future profession. I am achieving more tasks and taking more initiative because I asked more questions than I would have in the past and did my best to get out of my comfort zone. As I enter my third year of college, I want to take my experience and values from my internship with me and get out of my comfort zone to learn more about my interests and myself. I took risks this summer and learned a lot about various issues and administration operations that have impacted me more deeply than I thought it would.
Week 7
Baltimore Youth Arts is its own example of intersectionality, working to support youth impacted by the justice system through career development and honing into their inner creativity with a variety of different art elements throughout the year. Baltimore Youth Arts is a good example of the power of art and the ways in which art can move communities and positively impact individuals. My placement has intersected with youth justice, economic justice, and the arts. There are numerous placements that BYA intersects with, especially any placement supporting youth and empowering youth communities. Various placements are working with Youthworks and with that comes an understanding from different placement sites of the need to expose youth in Baltimore to a variety of opportunities not always accessible and to empower their communities and self. In only a few weeks, I’ve already witnessed the power of art and the growth of so many summer apprentices at BYA. It’s wonderful to see youth take control of their lives by tapping into their interests and curiosities through artistic and career related activities and classes. Collaboration with BYA includes placements putting youths interests at heart and letting them take the lead and build up the program they want for themselves. The work that Baltimore Youth Arts is doing is very special and I am very appreciative to have witnessed that magic this summer. I believe these youth centered programs are crucial for youth development and impact their lives more than one might think. That is why it’s incredible to see BYA put all their attention and intentions on the voices of the apprentices.