Dear friend,

Our Master of Social Work students Katie, Cortney, and Caroline are approaching the end of their internships at The Dignity Center! They have spent the past nine months with us, and their time at The Dignity Center has been a time of learning, laughs, and listening. 

 

We asked our interns to name their favorite moments at The Dignity Center, and it was hard for them to pick just a few! The three interns reflected on how they have grown from having to ask for a participant’s name over and over again to knowing the participants by name. Our interns emphasized that getting to know our participants and making them feel seen is important. The interns talked about how they enjoyed making sidewalk chalk art with the participants at our “Get Out the Vote” event in the Fall. As one of our interns remembers, “We were having fun drawing pictures, enjoying the beautiful fall weather, hanging out with the participants, walking with them…” Our interns also reminisced about excited participants who return to announce that they have secured a job or housing, or that they have been approved for rental assistance. Sometimes, our participants simply stop in to say hello! Our interns have many wonderful memories from their time at The Dignity Center that will stay with them long after they leave.

 

Along with making memories, our interns have learned a lot, whether about themselves or about our participants, from their time at The Dignity Center. One of our interns told us, “I have learned to be more humble, and I have learned a lot about diversity and the issues surrounding it.” Another added, “I have learned that having patience and perseverance is imperative to supporting our participants on their journey towards stability.” Our interns also gained tangible skills and knowledge through their work: one reflected that she has “learned about the community and government resources that are available for people who need support.” Perhaps most importantly, our interns learned that it is important to empower our participants: not to do things for our participants, but to accompany them as they do the work themselves. 

 

Our interns did not just learn from us — we learned from them, too! Mary and our current volunteers are grateful to these interns for taking on a major project: updating and enhancing the resource guide in our database. 

 

Our interns have done much to support our participants and volunteers during their time with us. Reflecting on her work at The Dignity Center, one of our interns said, “There are a multitude of barriers that are present in the systems of our society. I can help to advocate for my clients and help to bring about changes at the different levels.” Another added, “It is very satisfying to help others. Sometimes the little things like a friendly hello or smile can make the biggest difference to someone.” We are deeply grateful for hard work that our interns have done over these past months and we wish them the best in their next internships and continued coursework. 

At The Dignity Center, we could not do what we do without our fabulous interns! And, of course, we could not have interns without intern supervisors. Two of our current supervisors, Bridget Stevens-Murphy and Heather Alden, offer reflections on their experiences working with interns at The Dignity Center.

Bridget Stevens-Murphy writes, “Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to provide regular supervision to a master's level student from St. Mary University who was serving as an intern at The Dignity Center. This opportunity provided insight into the vast array of services offered at the Dignity Center and to witness the ways that The Dignity Center works to empower and support people encountering challenges and barriers. Providing supervision to a graduate intern allowed for me to be both the student and the learner as I was able to guide and support the intern in facing new challenges and rewards. It was a positive experience that was both enlightening and fulfilling.”

 

Heather Alden adds, “The Dignity Center is a wonderful space to develop skills as a social worker and teaches interns a great deal about working with a richly diverse group of people. As the field supervisor of an MSW intern, I have been impressed with the work my intern has done with the community at The Dignity Center and with the opportunities she has had to learn and grow. She has benefited from listening to the stories and experiences of participants and volunteers at The Dignity Center, and she has learned much about the resources that Minneapolis has to provide for our community. We wish her well in all she does!”

 

We are deeply grateful to Bridget and Heather, and to all our intern supervisors! We are always looking for more supervisors for our MSW students. If you or someone you know is interested and qualified to supervise an intern at The Dignity Center, let us know! Reach out to us at TheDignityCenter@gmail.com for more information.