From NYC: Prepared to Work, Determined to Suceed

Today was my first day working with STRIVE, an NGO located in NYC that I will be interning with this summer. The day consisted of many orientations, not only for myself, but also for the future clients of the program. STRIVE was very welcoming and it turns out I’m the youngest member on staff.

Since it is federally funded, it turns out that the program, Stronger Fathers, Strong Families, is not only for fathers but also for mothers as well. There are three parts to the program:

1. Embracing Parenthood (how one becomes a better parent for one’s child),
2. Healthy relationship building with one’s partner,
3. Job readiness.

What is awesome about this program is that it helps clients to prepare for job interviews by providing MetroCards to them (limited up to 3 interviews), helping them with resume building, giving them the attire needed, etc. If a client does not own professional attire (such as a suit and tie), STRIVE refers a location in Queens to them to get clothes for free. That’s just a sample of the many things that STRIVE does for its clients. I have yet to see a class take place (which starts tomorrow I believe), but I am very interested to see how the clients will evolve in this program.

I will be the social media intern for STRIVE, helping them with their Facebook and Twitter pages and starting their Tumblr (and maybe Instagram! haha who knows?). I’ll certainly have more to update these next few days or at least by the end of next week. This will be a short week for me considering I have Thursday and Friday off for the Fourth of July weekend.

Hopefully tomorrow won’t be as rainy, but I really don’t mind this cool breeze. Hope all of you Californians back home stay cool!


Natalie Nguyen, undergraduate, Community & Regional Development, UC Davis