Phillip Hanold – Penn State University

Phillip Hanold is a student at Penn State University Park. His major is Health Policy Administration, and he will be entering his senior year this fall. 

As a passionate young man interested in working with older adults and compliance and risk management, an internship with FSA seemed like a perfect fit. He knew from his very first communication with our staff that he had made the right choice.

Phillip experienced many positives during his time at Foxdale Village, tucked away amid Pennsylvania’s scenic mountains and in the heart of Nittany Valley. “Working directly with staff and residents has helped me improve my speaking skills and confidence. I have improved my interpersonal skills and have made valuable connections with the people that I work with.” Furthermore, he is incredibly grateful to have so many more resources and references than before his experience as an FSA Intern.

When asked what, if anything, has surprised him the most during his internship, Phillip replied that “the variety of things that need to be done to keep a nursing home running smoothly” is massive. “Every day is filled with new goals and new challenges. There are always new and different projects to be completed. Things to be updated as well as things to be thrown out or changed.” He enjoyed that the day-to-day administrative tasks were always different. Phillip also believes Foxdale and Continuing Care Retirement Communities are “perfect for people like me, who thrive in a fast-paced, challenging, rapidly changing environment.” He was genuinely shocked at the number of tasks that had to be done.

His advice to future interns is, “Do not be afraid to ask questions. There will be a ton of terminology and other things in the field that your studies may not have prepared you for. Asking questions has been a fantastic way for me to learn.” Phillip also commented that the staff was “incredibly supportive” and always provided him with the answers to the best of their knowledge.  

Before you think the internship was all work and no play, Phillip said that the Compliance and Risk Manager brought her 6-week-old puppies into Foxdale to visit with the residents. It was a positive experience for everyone involved. “The puppies were so excited to visit with the residents and joyfully ran about the room (to the best of their abilities). Many of the young puppies were still learning how to run and would often run sideways.” How cute!

Makenna Greaves - Ursuline College

Meet Makenna Greaves! She is an FSA intern at Kendal at Oberlin, utilizing the Linked Senior Platform with the residents within the care center facility.

She attends Ursuline College in Ohio, majoring in Counseling and Art Therapy. Starting this fall, she will head into her third year of her Master of Arts program.

When asked what made her choose FSA for her internship, she replied that she was fortunate to learn about FSA while interning at Kendal.  Then, “looking at FSA and their values, I was happy to work with them on this project, (too).”

Makenna said that collaborating “with FSA helps me gain client contact hours for my internship process through art therapy work. Having clients reminisce or make stories using slideshow images has been my favorite so far.”

Any surprises along the way? Well, “one thing that has really surprised me is the expanse of what the Linked Senior platform can do for the residents, and not every application has use the ‘typical’ way of thinking.”  

For those unfamiliar, Linked Senior is an evidence-based resident engagement platform for senior living. The platform optimizes the person-centered experience for residents by empowering staff with digital tools to assess, plan, implement, and evaluate engagement for the entire resident population. They support “person-centered care through life enrichment and dementia engagement using simple technology and non drug therapy”.

Benefits for the residents of Linked Senior are unlimited engagement, a more person-centered experience, and individualized engagement to optimize health and well-being. As for family members, they like Linked Senior because it enhances the quality of life for their loved ones, gives them unlimited engagement during community visits, and access to meaningful data on engagement with their loved ones. To Makenna, the experience “solidified that I really do enjoy working with this population and would like to continue in my career at some point after finishing my studies.”

Her advice to future interns is to “plan as much as possible!” Also, “getting my schedule to work…took me a while.” However, it was all worth it! Makenna said, “Don’t be afraid to just talk to the residents, even if their door is shut. Most are willing to talk to you and enjoy the college students that come to intern.”

The final takeaway from Makenna’s internship at Kendal at Oberlin was that the residents always made her laugh. It was not unusual for her to go home and realize that her cheeks hurt from smiling so much. Now that’s a pain we could all live with, right?

Sydney Cannonie – La Roche University

Sydney Cannonie is a student at La Roche University in Pittsburgh, PA. Her major is Graphic Design, and she will enter her senior year this fall. 

She “chose FSA as an organization to do my internship with because I believe in the same values, that everyone should be treated with dignity and respect, especially our elders.” This internship was Sydney’s first experience working in a professional environment, and she was excited to get started!

Sydney’s internship was with Foxdale Village, a Quaker-Directed Continuing Care Retirement Community in Pennsylvania’s Nittany Valley. She immediately noticed “how much communication and teamwork in a work environment will make a difference with every project you work on.”

When asked what advice she would give future interns, she suggested to “be prepared and do not be afraid to speak up/make suggestions to your supervisor.”

One of Sydney’s favorite memories was a photo shoot with some residents at Foxdale. “It was really funny because I was surprised at how much they enjoyed it. We all had a great time doing it.” Now those photos will be a reminder of a fun day!

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