CARE is a charitable organization whose mission is to provide long-term solutions to global poverty and disaster relief to those in need. I began my fall internship at CARE USA this past week, where I am working in the Advocacy and Public Policy department. The road to get there wasn’t an easy one as I did not initially hear back from CARE on time. I was told by the internship coordinator at Agnes Scott, that my resume and cover letter had been in her spam folder, but I didn’t give up that easily. I followed up with the internship site and they told me I was able to work in Advocacy and Public Policy, as there were two fellow Scotties who had dropped out of that department. Luckily, I was able to get the job, but I had to start the same week I heard back from my supervisor. Since I started the internship late I did not go through orientation with the other interns and had to rush through the procedures in the office.
Photo taken from Care.org
I arrived about thirty minutes early from MARTA and had to wait in the lobby for someone to retrieve me. I was given a tour of the building and the floor I am working on, then introduced to my supervisor. As I was waiting for my assignments, I was required to complete security training to learn about procedures in the office. Afterward, I met my supervisor and she had me look through CARE’s website to see what the organization was about. While I was looking through the website, I learned that CARE began as care packages that were sent to bombed areas after WW2.
My first full day was this past Tuesday, where I was tasked with working in a Google spreadsheet and compiled data on the upcoming 2020 House and Senate elections. I had to research whether a certain Senator or Representative was up for re-election and if they were running again, who was running against them, the primary election date was for their district, and whether the district they were in was Democratic or Republican-leaning. I compiled this data for CARE’s future use to be of help to possible donors.
Since I only work two days a week, I came in again Thursday where I researched how CARE would be able to set up a voter registration table at Agnes Scott and which clubs or organizations on campus they could partner up with. So far, I am enjoying my internship and like that I can do something different every day. I look forward to going back each week and gaining new skills and experiences.