Name: Kira Schmidt
Class Year: 2017
Internship Placement: I am a Hepburn intern at the Supportive Housing Network of New York (SHNNY), a nonprofit organization that advocates providing housing with on-site services for the homeless, specifically in New York City and state. I work under the chief digital and communications officer, meaning I update the website, help with social media, and edit videos for the YouTube channel!
What’s happening? We’d love to hear how your internship is going!
It’s been fun, especially since I get to be hands-on with a lot of projects, and am often able to work independently from the other staff. For example, last week I represented the organization at the Social Media for Nonprofits Conference, attending various panels that talked about how nonprofits can better promote their social media presence, and more easily get funded. It was really interesting to talk to people from all different nonprofit organizations, and it was really reassuring to know that there were all these people advocating for such amazing causes. During the conference, we discussed our individual problems relating to social media, and provided solutions that had worked in the past. It was fun to collaborate with so many people in my generation about social media in a more intellectual and educational forum. There were a lot of practical solutions and ideas that were bounced around, most of which were surprisingly very easy and free. I took a great deal of notes, and this week I presented all my findings to my supervisor, and we’ve been collaborating on how to put some of them into effect in our organization.
My supervisor and I at SHNNY’s annual conference, only a week into my internship
How I heard about my internship:
My friend saw this Katharine Hepburn internship at SHNNY on Bryn Mawr’s LanternLink, and knowing my interest in nonprofit organizations and my love of New York City, she forwarded the information onto me!
Why I applied for my internship:
I’ve always had a love of volunteering and helping the less fortunate, and this internship gave me the opportunity to meet some of the people that do it for a living. I was eager to learn about how homelessness is handled by the community and the government, especially in such a large city as New York.