When Heather Griffin and Nateela McGhee decided to apply for internships at Youth Villages, a nonprofit organization whose goal is to provide treatment for children with emotional and behavioral problems, neither of them expected that their lives would change so drastically. Both girls were placed in facilities in Memphis, which is where the organization’s headquarters is located.
Griffin, a senior majoring in both Psychology and Family and Consumer Sciences from Rutherford, said she decided to apply for an internship at Youth Villages because it is one of the top internships in the U.S. Even though she applied, she said she didn’t expect to be chosen out of the 1,000 other applicants.
Griffin worked at Dogwood Campus with 13 to 16-year-old girls. Before starting her internship, she was able to read the history of each of the girls that she would be working with. Dogwood Campus is a facility requiring many restrictions where the girls are supervised at all times. The idea is for the girls to transition into independent living.
At Dogwood Campus, the day’s activities begin around 6:30 every morning. The girls are allowed so many minutes to take a shower and eat breakfast before going to school. After school, the girls attend counseling sessions. These sessions are done in a group setting, usually for an hour. Sometimes there are one-on-one sessions, if needed. After the counseling sessions, there is a one-hour activity period. Following the activity period, the girls have dinner in the cafeteria, where no talking is allowed.
Griffin explained that some of the girls still have anger issues and that talking to one another might provoke an outburst of hostility. After dinner, the girls have another hygiene period before going to bed, which is usually around 8 p.m. Each girl has her own room without a television.
Griffin feels the internship at Youth Villages was a blessing and that it impacted her life in a big way.
“Seeing those girls smile every day despite what they’ve been through makes me look at life a lot differently. I no longer take so much for granted like I used to,” Griffin said.
McGhee, a senior Psychology major from Carterville, Tenn., completed her internship at Poplar Group Home, a facility for boys ages 16-18. This is her second internship with Youth Villages. She worked at Poplar the previous summer and enjoyed it so much she decided to re-apply. Growing up in the suburbs and living a sheltered life made McGhee want to work with inner-city children. She wanted to help them see that they don’t have to let their circumstances determine their future.
At Poplar, the day usually starts around 6 a.m. The routine is similar to Dogwood Campus, except not as restricted. All of the cooking, cleaning and other household chores are performed by a house mother. Poplar is a group home so there is a little more freedom for the boys there. After breakfast, the boys go to school. After school, they have a one-hour activity period and group counseling sessions, which also last about an hour. If the counselors feel that it is necessary, they will have one-on-one family sessions. If the boys maintain good behavior, they receive points and are awarded free passes to visit with their families or go on an outing. Outings are done as a group. Poplar is preparing these boys for a transition into adulthood.
While the boys are at school, the counselors spend their day working with Safe Place, which offers a safe place for children to go. Counselors educate the community about Youth Villages and all the services that they offer.
McGhee once wanted to go into forensic science, but has decided to specialize in child psychology. Seeing so many hurting children made her want to work with emotionally abused children.
“My life has changed drastically since my internship with Youth Villages,” McGhee said.
