Planned Parenthood of Southern New England

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Name of Organization: Planned Parenthood of Southern New England

Address: 175 Broad St. Providence, RI, 02908

Description of the overall mission of this organization: The mission of Planned Parenthood of Southern New England is to protect the fundamental right of all individuals to manage their own fertility and their sexual health, and to ensure access to the services, education and information to realize that right. They do this through three branches of service: Clinical services, Education, and Public Policy and Advocacy. 

Ages of youth served: In my internship, I mainly worked with youth ages 12 to 19 years old.

Name of Mentor: Yanine Castedo, Community Organizer (amongst other things)

Hours worked: I did a total of 140 hours between both semesters.

Description of your role and duties: (include administrative or hands-on or both): I worked individually with 2 student interns from the MET high school supporting their school projects. Audrey (pictured) is working on a book and website where people can safely disclose their sexual assault stories and work together to bring attention to the issues around rape and sexual assault. Brenda is working with local organizations to support the fight for drivers licenses for undocumented folks and immigration policy reform. I also worked in the clinic providing direct reproductive health care services to young people. And finally, I facilitated lessons and workshops for young people about sexual health topics.

Description of the culture of the place (how many people in the office, dress code, communication style): The health center and the Admin side are divided by the break room and people rarely cross paths. It was interesting to be a middleman in that situation where people transmitted information from either side through me. People in admin make significantly more than the people in the clinic and they are always so much laid back and less stressed than the clinic staff. They only follow the business casual dress code when Amanda Skinner (CEO, based in New Haven) is in the building. There are about 8 people in Admin and about 20 people in the health center. 

Additional Requirements (travel, etc): I didn't do much travelling for the internship as most of the events were based in the Education Center and Audrey and Brenda would also come to the clinic to meet with me.

Special notes on process of getting this internship: My mentor initially rejected my request to complete my internship with her because she was a busy person who felt over-worked as it is. I got this internship by insisting I would be an asset to her rather than a burden. However, she was right about how busy she was. I ended up mentoring two of her interns completely, without much support from her. It's definitely a bigger conversation to have with a potential mentor when they tell you they are too busy, they might be saving you the trouble of feeling unguided at times. 

Other internship opportunities with this organization: Currently, the clinic has research internships available for pre-med students, clinic assistant job positions and unpaid volunteerships. In admin, there are often available positions for internships, fellowships, and even part-time/full-time jobs. Check this link often to see if an open position interests you: PPSNE JOBS 

What three TAGS would you use to label this internship? Sexual Education, Teenagers, Mentoring

Your name: Jayleen Salcedo

Your cohort: Cohort 7.5 (December 2020 graduation)

Your email address if others can contact you: salcedojayleen@gmail.com also please call/text me instead at (401)-660-5867

LOVE AND LIGHT TO YOU ALL,

Jay ❤️