Our #SummerOfPurpose blog series follows this year’s Cleveland Foundation Summer Interns as they reflect on 11 weeks spent working with Cleveland-area nonprofit and public sector organizations. In today’s blog, we hear from Malcolm Miller, who spent his summer at at Medworks helping coordinate their clinic for reproductive and gynecological health.

Why did you initially decide to participate in this internship program?

As a future social worker, I was really excited that the Cleveland Foundation partnered with so many nonprofit organizations as internship host sites. I wanted to be at a place where I might work in the future as a social worker and I have been luck to have that exact experience.

What was the most valuable aspect of your internship experience?

The most valuable aspect of my internship has been to see the intersections of social services and health care. I would really love to pursue a degree in public health, and this has been my first opportunity to be in a setting focused on health care and health services.

What was the most challenging aspect of your internship experience?

One challenging aspect of my internship, that several other interns shared, was quickly finishing the work assigned to us. I have been learning to cope by making sure I do all my tasks as thoroughly as possible and keeping my ears peeled for other ways I might offer to help out the organization without being assigned those as tasks.

How did this internship helped you grow professionally & personally?

Professionally, I’ve had the surprising experience of getting to write grant proposals, which is something that I have wanted to learn for years and finally get to practice. Personally, I have learned to practice having a work-life balance by giving it my all during working hours and making plans with my friends (including the other interns) after work.

Where would you take a friend who is visiting Cleveland for the first time?

If my friend was visiting Cleveland for the first time I would take them to Lakefront Nature Preserve to go on a small hike and see the lake. Being from Philadelphia, the vibrancy of the wildlife in Cleveland and the expansiveness of the lake is far beyond what I could have imagined.

What advice would you give to someone considering applying for the Cleveland Foundation Summer Internship Program?

Perhaps this is advice for applying to anything, but my advice would be to apply to the internship not just for the host site but for the experience as a whole. Consider if your summer would be richer if you were to interact with interns and supervisors from many different sites, while having a coach at the Cleveland Foundation. I would certainly say that mine is.

Learn more about spending a #SummerOfPurpose as a Cleveland Foundation intern.