Meet Caitlyn, Children's Advocacy Intern
The Arc of New Jersey has been so fortunate to have Caitlyn interning here from Montclair State University this semester. Caitlyn is graduating with a dual Bachelor's of Arts degrees in Psychology and Child Advocacy & Policy. Here's a few Q&A with Caitlyn:
What has been the most rewarding aspect of your internship?
I would say being hands-on and helping families. In my coursework it’s consistent talk about the ups and downs of helping careers, it has been extremely rewarding to firsthand talk to families in need and be able to provide them with the resources and services. It’s also been rewarding to see how much growth I have made in just a few months. At the start of the internship, I had trouble advocating for myself and was not confident in my abilities. It has been rewarding to see how I have progressed throughout the semester.
What has been the most difficult part?
The most difficult part was when I created an emotional connection to a family. Boundaries and burnout are often taught in our child advocacy courses at Montclair, but putting boundaries in place is much more difficult in practice. Becoming attached to families and wanting to put all of my time and energy into staying up-to-date and helping was distracting for my coursework and even my personal life at times. It was hard to separate my time from my internship, my schoolwork, and my own free time. Despite the challenges I am extremely grateful for not only for the work completed and what I have learned, but for all the advice, well wishes, and appreciation I have received from both families and the staff at The Arc of New Jersey.
What are your future goals? Do you see yourself working in an advocacy related field?
It is hard for me to think long-term, especially because there are so many opportunities in advocacy let alone child advocacy. I started my college career with a major in education and quickly changed that to psychology with a minor in child advocacy and policy, and then quickly decided to double major. I always knew I wanted to work with children but don’t know specifically in what capacity. I can see myself working in an advocacy-related field in the future. There are so many families and children in need of services and resources and don’t always know the steps to or even know their rights. On the systemic end I would love to work on policy changes to benefit individuals long term and in the future, but at the same time working directly with families and seeing change happen in real time is an incomparable feeling to any other I have gotten from a helping position.
Thank you, Caitlyn. You have made a lasting impact on the families
served by The Arc of New Jersey!
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