Now that my internship has come to an end, I will reflect on what I have learned over the last 3 months at the ISH. I used to be a student long before I was an intern so I was very nervous coming in because I didn’t know how people would perceive me. I was working alongside the people who taught me when I was a young student back in 2011 so it was awkward for me to call them by their first name and to work alongside them. However, when I started, I had a great time in the first few weeks.
Within 3 weeks of being there, my boss immediately wanted to hire me because I had worked so hard for someone who had only been there for 3 weeks. She was impressed with how fast I would complete the tasks that I was given and how friendly and kind I was with the team. I got along really well with everyone and we did such great work. For my research component, I decided to conduct research on a way to start an Alumni Program at the school.
The school did have something in place and made a start, but it got lost when they started doing other projects like the new website. I conducted my research, but it was difficult because I had to support the team with a lot of things. I never got their trust easily because I used to be a student at the school. I also didn’t want to overstep my boundaries, so I offered a lot of value instead of getting involved with the latest drama that took place in the office.
It was difficult because there were instances when people couldn’t talk to each other and it resulted in me having to be professional and focus on the work instead of letting personal things get in the way. Eventually, the team realized that they needed me so Heather, my boss, kept on asking for them to hire me but she kept experiencing a lot of push back from the management team.
The other thing that I learned from this experience is that organizations can be difficult to run if there are no clear processes and protocols. The school doesn’t have any clear protocols and processes and that makes it difficult for us to collaborate with each other. Also, the admin staff are not given the respect they deserve and that is truly sad because they do a lot of work that doesn’t get noticed.
ISH is a great organization that I would love to see grow in the years to come but it is hard when you have a management team that isn’t willing to appreciate its teachers and those who work for them. It is hard if they are not willing to be open to new ideas. Overall it was a great experience and I am glad to have worked with the team and I look forward to seeing them soon. They were very nice, hospitable and accommodating and I truly honored to have been a part of their team.