E-Portfolio by

Nicole Barr
AHS8100
Chapter 1
My feelings and concerns going into my
internship were mostly stress and
nervousness. I did not know how I was
going to fit in the time to give myself to
volunteering for the United Way and this
made me afraid of failing.
Chapter 2
The elements of my agency context that I
learned the most about through my
internship is just how much manpower it
takes to make an event happen. Besides
the money and items needed, it also
takes a lot of staff as well as volunteers to
make things happen.
Chapter 3
An ethical issue I once dealt with was that
one time I was in public with a client and
a staff from one of the local psych
hospitals ran up to him and starting talking
very loudly. The client was clearly
uncomfortable and when I got back to
the office I contacted the hospital to
make them aware of the situation.
Chapter 4
What I have learned about what I want
and need in my supervisory relationship is
that mutual respect is everything. Without
a mutual respect, there is no loyalty and
without loyalty, a supervisor will not keep
good staff and will not be able to trust
that a staff member is working to their
highest potential.
Chapter 5: IPM- Integrative
Processing Model
1. Gathering objective data from
concrete experience
2. Reflecting
3. Identifying relevant theory and
knowledge
4. Examining dissonance
5. Articulating learning
6. Developing a plan
Mr. W
1. Severely
depressed.
Introvert. Wants to
work. Speaks
passionately about
previous work.
Reflecting, Identifying
Knowledge, Examining
Dissonance
2. Felt excited and accomplished when
Mr. W got a job. Then felt defeated when
he quit.
3. Realized that clients are individuals
who make their own decisions and that
depression can be overwhelming.
4. Thought I knew how to fix him but
now know it has to be clients goals, not
mine.
Articulating Learning,
Developing A Plan
5. Ive learned to not take things
personally and to be more supportive
even when I disagree.
6. I need to gather more data from Mr. W
about his wants, stay in contact with Voc
Rehab, and educate myself more on the
effects of depression.
Chapter 6: Individuals,
Families, Groups, and
Communities
My Experience
Through my career and my internship, I
have had experience in all four of these
areas. My least amount of experience is
through groups.
United Way of Delaware
All four of these interventions are possible
when working with United Way of
Delaware because this organization
focuses on every aspect of the
community.
My Progression in
Communication
At the start of my school journey, I was
terrified to get in front of a class and do a
presentation.
Now I enjoy speaking to a group.
I am good at dealing with individuals and
helping them get what they want and
need.
Chapter 7:
Cultural
Differences
My Experience.
My Experience with Cultural
Differences
The number one cultural difference that I
experienced with United Way is getting to
work with inner city kids. I loved their
ambition and strong desire to learn and
participate in activities.
Knowledge About My Own
Culture
I feel that due to the media, society has
an inaccurate perception of inner city
children. All we hear about is violence
and negativity. It was my experience that
these children were filled with joy and a
love for life and learning.
Chapter 9: Stress and My
Internship
Me: How I want to be:
My Life of Stress
I have always been a fairly high stress,
high anxiety person although I do try my
best to relax and have fun when I can.
Internship Stress
Something I learned about my stress
through my internship is that I can handle
even more than I thought I could! Family,
my job, and school seemed to max me
out but I took on the internship and still
managed.
Maintaining Stress
The best way that I maintain my stress in
both my career as well as the internship is
to be sure to set healthy boundries with
the people I serve. I keep things
professional yet compassionate and this
helps me to not become too emotionally
involved in work.
Chapter 10: My Internship
Experience
My Appreciation
The thing that I most appreciate about
my internship is getting to really
understand what the United Way does for
our community. There is so much hard
work and careful planning that goes into
creating events and programs that help
those who truly need it.
Regrets
My regret as my internship comes to a
close is that I did not get to be as involved
as I had wished to be. The people I
worked with were very busy and that
made it difficult for me to communicate
effectively with them. As a result, I intend
to stay on with the United Way as a
volunteer so that I can learn even more
about this great organization.
Personal and Professional
Growth
I have very limited experience in my
professional life so what I need to do to
continue to grow is to use my knowledge
from my career, my internship, and my
schooling to find what my true passion is
and chase that dream.
Career Goals and My Future
Things I know to be true for my future:
1. I am very intrigued with mental health
2. I do not want to stay working in direct
care
3. I want to take the knowledge I have
and use it to improve the lives of mental
health patients.
4. I never want to stop learning.
Chapter 11
Short term goal: Apply for the Masters
level position that is currently open on my
team.
Long term goal: Obtain my Doctorate.
In 5-10 years: Working to make policies,
laws, and standards to improve the lives
of the mentally ill.
Thank you all and best
of luck to you in the
future!