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For Sarah May (junior, Crime, Law, and Justice), working at the Burrowes Street Youth Haven opened her eyes to career opportunities she had never imagined. The Youth Haven is under the umbrella of the Centre County Youth Services Bureau, and is a safe place for runaway and homeless teens. It serves adolescents between the ages of 13-18, offering a place to sleep, warm meals, and counseling by trained staff. Sarah’s part-time job at Mad Mex led her to this opportunity, as she worked with the director at the Youth Haven, Vanessa Baronner. After accepting the position, Sarah enrolled in internship credits through LA 495 to complete the experience.

Sarah’s duties at the Youth Haven helped her understand all of the aspects of running a government-aided shelter. Not only did she participate in counseling sessions with the youth and their parents, but she also helped with the paperwork involved. Although the shelter is open 24/7, Sarah generally worked between the hours of 12 PM – 8 PM to get hands-on experience with the youth. However, because youth are only permitted to stay at the shelter for 15 days at a time, there is a high turnover rate. While Sarah did have opportunities to interact with the youth, she spent much of her down time doing the paperwork necessary to keep the shelter functioning legally.

Sarah feels that two important qualities to have when working at the Youth Haven are compassion and self-control. Because many of the youth are coming out of homes that did not foster to their needs, they are troubled and require extra doses of encouragement. However, Sarah kept in mind that these youth were responsible for the decisions they made. In discussing these issues with the teens and their parents, Sarah learned to practice more self-control with her advice giving. Counseling the families became much easier for her as the semester progressed, and she gained confidence.

One of Sarah’s accomplishments at the Youth Haven was getting one girl to open up to her who seemed to not open up to anyone else. It made Sarah feel important and needed, and she was happy she got the opportunity to make a difference in the girl’s life. The Youth Haven’s goal is to get teens and families on the path to working out their issues and making the home a positive environment. For the youth who update the counselors on their progress, the Shelter offers gift cards and other rewards. Such incentives, Sarah feels, help to maintain contact with the youth and to make sure they know that someone cares about them.

There were specific Liberal Arts courses Sarah took at Penn State that helped her understand the youth and their situations better. Social Problems (SOC 005) helped Sarah recognize how society’s influence creates a need for a shelter like the Youth Haven. Intro to Criminal Justice (CRIM 100) and Intro to Law (CRIM 113) helped Sarah gain awareness of juvenile legal issues and obtain the critical thinking skills needed for this internship. She recommends these courses to students considering pursing this or similar internships.

Sarah’s dedication to the Youth Haven paid off when her unpaid internship ended and the CCYSB offered her a paid position. She will have the opportunity to work as a Relief Staff Counselor and will continue working closely with the Burrowes Street Youth Haven. For more information on this internship, contact Andrea Boyles, Director of Operations, at aboyles@ccysb.com or Sarah May at smm5212@psu.edu.