HOW TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT AN INTERNSHIP PROGRAM

Tanya Kahl, 211 ManagerInfo Line (Akron, Ohio)

Info Line

• Non-profit organization, incorporated in 1975 to provide Information and Referral in Summit County

• Operate five main programs• Provide 24/7 2-1-1 service for

Summit and Lorain Counties, Ohio• Provide after-hours 2-1-1

service for 6 additional counties

Info Line Background (continued)• Answer approximately 97,000 calls per year

(2-1-1 calls and other contract calls)• Since 2001, Info Line has lost about 50% of

the revenue to support 2-1-1 for Summit County

• Daytime I&R Specialists reduced from approximately 6 FTE to 2 FTE

• Calls continue to increase• Increased management time overseeing

new contracts to help support operations

Help!

Info Line’s Intern Program

• In January 2009, started offering internships with Emergency Food Clearinghouse and MedAssist

• In November 2011, began offering full 2-1-1 internship

• Expanded in fall 2012

• In Spring 2013 had seven social work interns

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 (projected)0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

Intern/Volunteer Hours

Impact of Intern Program

2011 2012 2013 YTD0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

% I&R Calls Handled by Interns/Volunteers

Impact of Intern Program

• 13% increase in calls answered• Reduction in abandoned calls• Reduction in hold times• Improved morale• Resource updates• Other projects

Jan-April 2012 Jan-April 201323,000

24,000

25,000

26,000

27,000

28,000

29,000

Total I&R Calls Handled

Getting Started

• Buy-in at your agency • Identify staff to recruit/train/supervise • Identify potential programs at universities and

community colleges and learn their requirements

• Decide minimum number of hours for each internship• 2-1-1 : 200 hours during a semester• Food referrals : 64 hours over a minimum of 2

months• Get started!

Potential Interns

Social Service Technology

SOCIAL

WORK

Associa

tes

Communications

Lib

rary

S

cie

nce

UndergraduateEmergency Management

Pu

blic A

dm

inis

trati

on

PsychologyMastersIT

Recruitment

• Meet with potential programs • Find out if colleges have

Career/Internship Office• Find out about websites for posting

internships• Post on your website and let

board/partners know

Sample Internship Posting

Selection Process

• Develop position description(s) and application process

• Interview each candidate• Make sure intern understands the type of

work• Check references• Determine whether to conduct a

background check

Orientation

Sample Training Schedule (Day 1-2)

Training Schedule--(Monday, Wednesday 9-5)

Date Time

ABC's of I&R

Section #

Person Responsible Description

1/14/2013        

  9:00   Mary Orientation--picture, agency tour, introductions to staff

  10:00 1 Mary Introduction to I&R

    2 Mary I&R Process; Code of Ethics

  11:00 6 Mary Confidentiality; include Info Line Policy

  12:00     Break

  1:00   Mary Expectations

  1:30     Shadow Staff

 3:30--

5:00     Read ABC's of I&R 1,2,6, 9 and 22

       Do scenarios of what is Information only and what is a referral

         1/16/201

3 9:30   TanyaComputers, phones, emails, network drives, log-ins; accessing Refer-Net

  10:00 22 Tanya Taxonomy

  11:00 9 Tanya Refer for searching

  12:00     Break

  1:00   Tanya Practice searching

  2:30   Mary Questions/Open Discussion; Review scenarios

  3:00     Shadow staff

  4:00     Review Sections 9 and 22.

        Read Sections 4, 5, 18

Training Manual Table of Contents Sections from ABC’s of I&R Additional Sections  1 The Nature of Information and Referral   1A Expectations  2 From Greeting to Closure – The I&R

Process  2A I&R Process (Practice determining whether Information or Referral Call with

sample calls)Practice communication techniques and assessment techniques

        2B Code of Ethics  3 Empowerment and Advocacy   3A Advocacy Policy and Procedure  4 Crisis Intervention   4A Crisis Intervention Policy and Procedure        4B Abuse Reporting Procedures   5 Follow Up   5A Follow Up Policy and Procedure  6 Confidentiality   6A Confidentiality Policy and Procedure

Discuss process of obtaining verbal consent anytime name will be shared with an agencyWritten consent for emergency food line is signed at pantries

  7 Values, Awareness and Self-Determination

     

  8 Responding Effectively to “Challenging” Inquirers

     

  9 Using the Resource Database for I&R Referrals

     

  10

Disaster and the I&R Specialist   10A Info Line’s Role in DisastersApplicable sections of Emergency Procedures

  11

Special Populations –Serving Diverse Communities

  11A Using Language Line for InterpretingOhio Relay Service

  12

Serving People with Addictions      After each section is read, trainee should discuss that population with supervisor and conduct relevant searches in ReferNet to help increase awareness of services for that population. Supervisor will assign these throughout the internship.

  13

Serving Older Adults    

  14

Serving Young People    

  15

Serving People with Mental Illness    

  16

Serving Miltary Personnel and their Families

   

  18

Stress Management and the Limits of I&R

   

  19

Working in an I&R Call Center   18A Review call monitoring formReview some reports from Taske

        23A Taxonomy SectionInclusion/Exclusion Criteria Using ReferNetPrinciples of Indexing and Taxonomy Structure Introductory Taxonomy ExerciseTaxonomy Structure and Types of Terms I&R Poster with Annual StatisticsSearch Techniques Top Referred Services and Agencies

Learning Contracts

Supervision

• Requirements of Supervisor• Weekly meetings• Call monitoring/Coaching• Evaluation/Grades• Meetings with faculty liaison

Supplemental Work

• Customer Satisfaction Surveys• Follow up calls• Contacting agencies regarding resource

updates• Outreach events• Piloting new activities• Presenting at staff meetings• Shadowing management or staff at meetings• Site visits to agencies

And maybe…

• Data analysis• Analyzing phone recordings• Writing grants• Identifying potential funders• Helping create specialized directories• Social media posts• Reviewing newspapers/websites for

resources• Program development

Intern Evaluation of our Program• Most beneficial to career development• Least beneficial to career development• Training• Supervision• Projects

End of Internship

• Thank you card signed by staff in department

• Small gift bag/gift card (~$15)• Treats

Miscellaneous Tips

• Post intern and volunteer photos and names on bulletin board in breakroom

• Food and meeting with I&R staff before start of year

• Block off supervisor’s calendar during first month of internship

• Develop a system for tracking intern/volunteer hours

What worked well

• Increased capacity to answer calls• Reduced stress for regular staff• Interns are enthusiastic and energetic• Being selective about interns• Social work interns• Team approach to training• Experienced staff mentoring interns• Hiring interns after internship

Challenges

• Time required for training and supervision

• Time required to oversee project work• Developing a steady stream of interns• Staff resistance• School breaks/gaps in intern availability• Not all interns work out

Why develop an intern program?

• Answer more calls• More time for each caller• Increase staffing during peak

hours/days/seasons• Higher time commitment than most

volunteers• Social work students have good

background • Extra projects can work on• Valued by funders

Sample Documents Available• Internship Posting• Intern/Volunteer Manual• Interview Questions• Training Schedule• Training Manual Table of Contents• Learning Contract• Evaluation Form for Interns

Contact Information

Tanya KahlManager, 211 and MedAssistInfo Line703 South Main Street, Suite 211Akron, OH 44311(330)996-5325tkahl@infolineinc.org