“Going into this internship, I was unsure about working with an older population. But, by the end of my experience, my favorite part was meeting new people.”

Those are thoughts from Jaysha Jackson, a senior at Howard University studying pre-med. As someone who is focused on pediatrics, Jaysha never thought she’d find herself in Ohio working with older adults. Still, when an internship opportunity arose involving an intergenerational experience with early childhood students and older adults, her interest was piqued.

“I knew that I wanted an internship that would allow me to be hands-on with people while still being in the healthcare research space,” shared Jaysha. “As a pre-med student with a focus on pediatrics, I often get opportunities to work with kids, but senior living was something that I thought could be interesting before pursuing med school.”

Jaysha found the internship offered through Friends Services Alliance (FSA), which offers an annual internship program designed to introduce young students to the field of senior living. The program is co-sponsored by Friends Foundation for the Aging.

Kendal at Oberlin’s Intergenerational Program

Located 30 miles southwest of Cleveland, Kendal at Oberlin has been a valued partner with FSA for many years, introducing students of various backgrounds to the senior living field since 2011.

When Jaysha landed in Ohio, she was introduced to Michele Tarsitano-Amato, the Creative Arts Therapy Director at Kendal at Oberlin, who would serve as preceptor and mentor throughout Jaysha’s internship. Michele provided background on goals set for the internship, which would largely focus on an intergenerational study using a Tovertafel or “Magic Table.”

“Throughout my six-week internship, I worked with the Tovertafel, best described as a magic table. My focus was on how residents living with dementia connected with the machine, and second to observe the children interacting with it, through the community’s early learning center,” shared Jaysha. “The Tovertafel is like a smartboard projector but onto a table. You can play games, and use props and tools.” One example is an interactive game in which players can “pop” bubbles.

Jaysha’s internship included housing, which allowed her to relocate to Ohio for the summer.

As an intern, her days consisted of one-on-one sessions, small group sessions, and intergenerational activities. Jaysha was focused on areas with the table that engaged residents, which games drew out a competitive nature, and how engaging with the table changed in different settings.

The table was placed in a location where the older adults with dementia reside, and its use required guidance and prompting. But Jaysha shared that once the residents were at the table, they were completely engaged and endlessly curious.

“I remember observing a resident play a marble game. I knew that you could push or hover your hand over. But this person started blowing on the marbles, and to my surprise, they moved. I never would have thought of that,” she shared.

Connections With Older Adults

Jaysha admits that, initially, she was more excited to work with the children in the Early Learning Center. But, after living alongside the older adult residents, her perspective shifted.

“You get what you put into it,” she shared. “You must engage and ask the residents questions. I learned that there are a lot of retired doctors (living) here, including pediatricians – which is the area I want to work in. It’s interesting to sit down and hear from them. To me, they are like real-life search engines.”

An area that particularly stood out to Jaysha over the course of her internship was the similarities in how the young children and the older adults interacted with the Tovertafel table. She was also pleasantly surprised by how the two populations engaged with each other, prompting questions and different ways of approaching problems.

The Preceptor’s Role

FSA’s internship program encourages more young professionals to consider aging services as a career field. As the number of seniors grows in the United States, senior living facilities and other aging services organizations have an increased need to bring others into the field.

Jaysha’s internship was one of several that FSA coordinated during the summer of 2024.

One of the requirements of FSA’s internship program is that a student receive academic credit, which includes having a designated preceptor (a teacher or instructor).

For Michele, supervising Jaysha was a joy. Jaysha’s independence and vibrant personality led to a hands-off approach.

“Jaysha brings a cool energy and comes across professionally. She brought a level of commitment, a level of curiosity, and she really ran with the project that I gave her,” Michele shared.

An exciting development from Jaysha’s internship is the lasting nature of her research. Jaysha’s observations and training with the staff will lead to a lasting program with the Tovertafel table.

“Jaysha was able to identify increased movement and how non-verbal residents responded. She knew when certain residents were energized by the young children and how others were overwhelmed with that dynamic,” shared Michele.

For Michele, her motivation to act as a preceptor each summer is driven by the desire to pay it forward and, simply, to show young people that this is a cool field to work in. It’s common for younger adults to avoid the field because of preconceptions on what the environment will be like, and how the residents will interact with them, she shared. For Michele, her biggest honor is seeing students with a degree of ageism walk away with a shifted belief that it’s much different than they assumed.

Friends Services Alliance Internship Program

The FSA Internship Program offers students exposure to the possibilities of working in the growing field of senior living. Get more details about the program here.