Experience
Below is more information on skills developed from my work and volunteer experience.
Administration Intern ~ Journey of Faith Church
- May - July 2024 - Organized and completed admissions paperwork on paper and digitally using Excel - Researched and provided feedback on current employee self-evaluation questionnaire and gave improvement suggestions - Created a redesign for the school website that would be updated, professional, and functional for new and returning families - Assisted in preparation and planning for upcoming events - Organized inventories and worked to create a better system to manage items stored
This internship was very beneficial to my professional growth as I gained experience in a sector I am very interested in, the non-profit world. I was able to use my business education and apply it to see what the business side of a church setting is like. Some of my favorite experiences were learning more about HR through the employee self-evaluations and being able to redesign to website to better suit their needs. One soft skill that I developed during this internship was flexibility. I had to stay willing to adapt to change as every day I could be assigned a different task. Overall, I experienced a variety of tasks and feel more equipped to take on another business position in the non-profit world.
New Student Orientation Leader (volunteer) ~ Biola University
- July & August 2023 -Communicated and interacted with about 30 new students over email to welcome, give information, and answer questions -Collaborated with about 40 other orientation leaders to put on orientation events -Individually led a small group of about 30 students in ice breaker activities, games, and creating community -Assisted in events and answered questions from parents and students in a helpful and caring manner
This has been my favorite volunteer experience so far! It combined my love for helping students and my love for my university. I definitely had to step out of my comfort zone to be a leader to so many new people, but it was a rewarding experience. I was able to interact with students and parents from diverse backgrounds. I improved my people skills as I made conversation with new people and worked alongside a team of 40 other leaders. I developed public speaking skills as a spoke in front of a group of students. I developed leadership skills as I led my group of 30 students in games, conversation, tours, and creating community. From this experience I learned that working in a university setting is something I am interested in as a career. This position made me feel fulfilled in my work as I could see the impact that helping others as an orientation leader was having on the new students.
Child Care Worker & Sunday School Teacher ~ Journey of Faith Church
-June 2019 - present; seasonal -Co-lead a group of approximately 20 preschool aged children in both academic and social development activities during childcare to encourage growth while maintaining well controlled classrooms -Lead a Sunday School classroom of approximately 20 elementary aged kids so that they can learn about God in a safe and loving environment -Facilitate check in/out procedures for classroom to ensure that students are safely picked up/dropped off -Communicate effectively with parents about children’s activities to resolve daily issues and maintain strong relationships -Organize classroom activities while executing on the spot problem-solving skills to create a controlled, orderly, and safe environment
This work experience opened me up to the working world and has helped me gain many transferable skills into my future career. I developed my communication as I talked with parents about updates, saftey, and general reports of the child's day. I developed leadership as I lead classrooms of children and sometimes lead my co-teachers. I also developed my problem-solving skills as working with children presented many unexpected and last minute challenges.
Preschool Teacher Assistant ~ Journey of Faith School
-July 2020-August 2021 -Collaborated with classroom teachers to provide a warm, nurturing, and organized atmosphere to approximately twelve children so that they would be able to learn and grow -Mediated conflict between children to ensure quick resolution and character building -Adjusted quickly to changes and communicated effectively with managers to switch to whatever task was needed -Integrated an attention to detail during interactions and prep work to reflect the worth of each individual
In this role I was able to take on more responsibility as a teacher of young children. This role was in a formal preschool setting, and I was able to take on more work hours and tasks. I led classrooms as a single teacher in certain situations and also collaborated with one other teacher in other instances. This variety of experiences helped develop my leadership skills as I was able to lead alone and alongside others. I also learned valuable lessons about the professional world as I came into contact with many diifferent people as coworkers or parents of the children. I developed professional skills in collaborating with those who have different work styles than me. Overall, this was a valuable time where I was pushed out of my comfort zone, and grew from it.
Vacation Bible School Leader (volunteer) ~ Journey of Faith Church
-Week-long camp in June 2019, '22, '23 & '24 -Co-led a group of approximately 15 students ages 7-10 -Collaborated with other volunteers and leaders to provide a safe, fun, and nurturing environment for children with crafts, games, stories, and conversation -Dialogued with children to build relationships and reinforce teachings in small groups -Handled conflict between children when it arose and acted proactively to prevent unsafe situations -Assisted with set up and tear down of daily activities
This volunteer experience has been valuable to me in that I have been able to participate many times since I have been in middle school and beyond. I only listed more recent years, but I have seen growth in my leadership, communication, and people skills through volunteering for VBS. When I was much younger I was quite shy, but I have been able to break out of that and now confidently lead groups of children at VBS. I enjoy this opportunity every summer!