E-PORTFOLIO

BY: JENNIFER VALDES

GETTING STARTED
You can only become truly accomplished at
something you love. Dont make money your goal.
Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then
do them so well that people cant take their eyes off
you Maya Angelou
Feelings
Anxious
Not knowing what to expects
Concerns
Will this be a good fit
Time Management

GETTING STARTED
Learning Interest
Understand the organizational structure of a nonprofi t
What responsibilities does the President have
What does a development intern do
How are they able to meet the needs of their families
Volunteer opportunities to incorporate my family
Strengths
Quick learner
Friendly
Task oriented
Weaknesses
Not understanding the governance of the organization
Perfectionist

GETTING ACQUAINTED
Agency Context
Serve children and their families who receive
treatment at Nemours/AI DuPont Hospital, Christiana
Care, & Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia.
Governance
Serve 65% Caucasian families
Social Context
Complex medical issues
Family-Centered services
Has Social Worker on staff to work with families
State level
Insurance Changes
Hospital policy and procedural changes

VIEW OF THE AGENCY CONTEXT

I was really surprised that the organization served
primarily Caucasian families. Interestingly, the house
serves a lot of families from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and
lower Delaware. The amount of international families
served has decreased.
Working in an agency that is focused on making families
comfortable while they are going through struggles with
their child is a breath of fresh air coming from the State of
Delaware. This family-centered approach is the core of the
Ronald McDonald House as they are trying to meet all the
needs of the family.
The policies of the RMHC can be continuously changing as
they have to report to the headquarters. Most recently, the
house cannot distribute any marketing material unless
approved by the headquarters .

ETHICAL COMPETENCY
Being cultural competent
Transparency with donors
Quality of care
Legal policies and procedures (HIPPA)
Mandated reporters
Maintaining appropriate boundaries

ETHICAL PRINCIPLE 1: PROTECTION

OF LIFE
Currently, I am facing ethical concerns in my workplace
regarding a particular case I have where the grandmother
is not abiding by the safety plan that was established and
agreed upon.
The grandmother is to contact the police when client is
being physically aggressive towards any member of the
household. When verbal outbursts occur, the grandmother
is to contact the therapist.
Monthly team meetings have been held to address the
safety concern but time after time the safety plan is not
being followed.
The Division of Family Services has been contacted on
numerous occasions and is looking to obtain guardianship
of the client but this has not yet happened.
Therapist and myself have ethical concerns about
continuing our work with the family if they are not willing
to contract for safety.

LEARNING STYLE
The converging style describes me best as I learn
best by a hands on approach. The Development
Director involved me in the special events process
from attending meetings to cultivating sponsorships.
My knowledge of engaging in prospect research has
expanded. She walked me through problem solving
strategies to address a misprint from the printing
company. The Development Director has made a big
impact on my time at my internship as she has been
readily available when needed.

SUPERVISION
The site supervisor was not always present at the
organization so I spoke with the Development
Director on a regular basis about any challenges I
was facing, what things were working well, and how I
could gain skills for my professional development.
I felt that with the Development Director provided a
good balance of skill building and monitoring the
quality of my work. I enjoyed that she was very
concrete and detailed in what she wanted completed.
I would like more constructive criticism in my future
supervisor.

COMMUNICATION
Individually, I met parents and a few children at the Change
the Luck telethon where I was able to gain their perspective
on their experiences at the various houses.
I had opportunities to communicate with families of the
house during monthly Family Nights. During this time,
families shared the challenges they faced with the hospital,
how to deal with the stress of a sick child, and what is
currently working well for the families.
I participated in community activities such as the American
Girl Fashion Show and the 5K Run/Walk where I was able to
expand my personal network.
During the course of the internship, I feel I have become
more knowledge about the house and feel confi dent in
increasing community awareness about the Ronald
McDonald House.

CULTURAL COMPETENCE
In the organization, I found that there was not a lot of
diversity in the staff and even the board of directors.
This was surprising to me given the various
backgrounds the organization serves.
During this internship, I was able to appreciate the
challenges the families face as my son was
unexpectedly hospitalized for 3 days. That experience
increased my compassion I have for the families as I
felt the exhaustion and unpredictability of situations.
Organizational culture
Value eating lunch together each day
Monthly team meetings

WRITING OPPORTUNITIES
American Girl model scripts
Change the Luck letter to potential donors
5k Post card
Emails & Flyer for the 5k run/walk

SELF-CARE
I felt I handled the pressure of stress better than I
anticipated at the beginning of the internship.
External Stressors
Structural Changes in my current organization
Family health issues
Balancing internship, work, family, & school
Internal Stressors
Poor nutrition because I was always eating in the car
Lack of sleep
Feelings of being overwhelmed
Ways to decompress
Shopping
Going for a walk
Breathing

ENDING INTERNSHIP
Appreciate the house allowing me to participate in so
many activities
Will continue to volunteer at the house
Received a letter of recommendation from the
Development Director
Feelings of relief, joy, and happiness
Continue personal networking
Development Director
Founder of Races to Run

PLANNING OF MY CAREER
Want to continue working with children & families in a
more hands on approach
Likely will continue working with the State of
Delaware mainly for the health benefi ts and pension
In the future, I want to obtain my Masters of Social
Work and become a Family Crisis Therapist in a school
setting
Continue to build my social network and maintain
relationships with diff erent community based services