Practicum

Below is a summary of my practicum for Public Leadership. I chose to take PLCY 213: Nonprofit Leadership & Social Innovation and learned a lot about nonprofit organizations, movements, and how to make impactful decisions.

What did you do for your practicum?

For my practicum I took PLCY 213: Foundations of Nonprofit Leadership & Social Innovation. This class covered basic to complex topics on why we need nonprofits, their intersection with government, and foundational figures, groups, and legislation that have impacted nonprofits. The largest assignment and practical learning aspect of this course was shadowing/interviewing a leader within a nonprofit. This was a really amazing experience because I got to take all of the things I learned in the classroom and apply them to a real organization. This experience allowed me to ask questions and gain insight on the working of nonprofits.

What did you learn from your practicum?

I learned a lot from my practicum about nonprofit organizations and the leadership it takes to start a movement and see it through. Specifically, I learned that if a nonprofit is to be successful and influential, it must be backed by a determined and driven group of leaders. In order to impact and create change, some one has to step forward, name an issue, and work towards a solution.

How have you grown as a leader, student, and professional?

I chose to upload my Nonprofit Shadow and Analysis paper from PLCY213. This paper captures my experience within my practicum and analyzes my interview with a nonprofit. This paper and class helped me to grow as a student, leader, and professional. It helped me to grow in my understanding of nonprofits, learn about what it takes to run and organize a movement, and network with senior leaders in organizations. This paper captures lessons learned in the course, but applied to a real world organization.

How can you apply your practicum experience to your life/career moving forward?

Using what I learned in my practicum, I can continue to question problems in today’s society and seek movements, solutions, and help in solving problems. Further, I am able to connect issues, to movements, to policy change and will continue to fight for the things I feel are right.