Summer Intern Spotlight: Payton S.

What led you to apply for the Development Internship?
"I didn’t know what my summer plans were, and things felt really out of the ordinary because of COVID. I thought it would be a good opportunity to get experience in development and I knew I’d be working with people I like and look up to. I thought it’d be a great time to learn about working in a Jewish space too."

What are you working on this summer?
"We’re creating the digital portion of the annual report. I’ve been interviewing students about their experiences with the BJC. We’re compiling that with highlights and descriptions of events into one digital piece. I’ve been using Piktochart and mapping it all out."

Does this internship connect to your academic/professional goals?
"Yeah! I’m interested in working with a non-profit organization and I find it really fulfilling. I feel like I'm doing something that will really matter to people. I'm learning where to throw in numbers and when to use action words and sticking to a theme. Danielle has been helpful in leading me in the right direction."

What's it like having an internship during COVID?
"It’s definitely different than I expected. This internship has been really flexible and we also do professional development and I get to talk about my academic career and how to use these skills in the future. It’s nice to be in a cohort group and have a chance to our work and collaborate during our weekly meetings."

You've been attending Cohort Learning Sessions with staff, what's something you've learned from one of those sessions that resonates with you?
"I liked the self care one because it made this internship seem like a workplace environment that cared about us as interns and not just what we were producing. Paige’s perfectionist lesson plan showed how well she knows all of us and really hit home. We did an anonymous activity agreeing and disagreeing with certain statements relating to perfectionism. Even though we were all different, we connected through some parts. You know your grades don’t define you, but sometimes you get caught up in it. Paige really knew how to get us to think about our individual selves. "

What's something you've learned or something that has motivated you during this internship?"I feel like this internship has flown by. I guess I’ve been given a space to be a lot more creative in my projects, so I've learned a lot about how I interpret looking at our programs and events. I think maybe working with someone with a different background than me (an actual adult) has been so nice. I don’t just feel like I'm turning things into Danielle, it feels like we’re doing it together."
_______
Payton is a rising third year helping to create the 2019-2020 BJC annual report. She has a strong commitment to the Jewish community, having been involved in Jewish leadership positions throughout high school and now through Hillel at UVA. Passionate about helping others, Payton is majoring in Global Development Studies with a minor in Psychology and Public Policy & Leadership. Payton is considering applying to law school after college!