The Royal Experience Summer Internship Program

It is hard to believe that my time at the Montgomery County Detective Bureau is already over. There were many rewarding aspects to this internship. This internship gave me so many opportunities to experience so many new things within the criminal justice system. My most favorite experience was definitely getting to shadow an autopsy. I almost passed out during it, but I still thought it was the coolest thing ever. It also helped me decide that I was definitely more suited for an analysis job. Another rewarding part of this internship was knowing how much of an impact my work was making on my community. I was assigned to work in the Detective Bureau’s Major Crimes unit to analyze data in an ongoing investigation for catalytic convertor theft. My job was to look through GPS tracking data and see if it lined up with addresses listed in police reports as well as noting other stand out addresses and reporting my findings to the detectives in that unit to be used in court. I was also able to work with some of the Detective Bureau’s Intelligence Analysts and check out the programs they use for their analysis. Being that this is my intended career path, I am extremely grateful that I was given the opportunity to learn about the different ways intelligence analysis is done, as well as putting everything I’ve learned at Scranton to use in a real-life case.

The most challenging part of this internship was the day-to-day schedule because this job is not like other jobs where you know exactly what you are going to be doing every day. There were some days where I had a million things to do and others where I would do the most minimal tasks just to feel like I had done something. This was difficult to face at first because I felt like I was not contributing or being lazy on the days where nothing was happening, but one of the lieutenants assured me that it was completely normal because crime does not run on a 9 to 5 schedule.

Clare Maguire ’23
Criminal Justice

This summer, I am an intern at the New Jersey State Parole Board (NJSPB) with their Community Programs Division (CPD). I have completed only a handful of days here yet have already gained a deeper understanding of parole. For example, I had the opportunity to sit in on a revocation hearing, which occurs when a parolee has violated a condition of their release. I also had the opportunity to observe a parole board hearing in which a prison inmate is eligible for parole. In this instance, the parole board decided to grant the defendant parole and require his participation in a community program. Both hearings exposed me to the prison population and gave me firsthand experience with what the NJSPB does.

In addition to observing two hearings, I have learned extensively about various community programs. These programs are offered or sometimes required for parolees based on needs, such as substance abuse or addiction counseling and mental health recovery. I have yet to visit these programs in person, which I hope to do soon. Still, new program ideas are often being proposed, and I have already had the chance to help brainstorm program ideas for different groups of offenders.

These community programs are about more than just compliance; rather, the goal is behavior and attitude change. Parole gives second chances, which everyone deserves. The CPD holds a positive mindset toward second chances, which I share, and have wanted to incorporate into my future career. Though I am not certain of my long-term career goals, my internship has reinforced my interest in offender rehabilitation and transition in the community.

Sydney Gero ’23
Criminal Justice

As the world continues to rely on the use of technology, the need for trained IT professionals is rapidly expanding. IT advances businesses operations and enhances learning. In my internship thus far, I have experienced first-hand how an IT department must operate to do so. From this internship. I hope to gain knowledge of the corporate world and continue to apply what I have learned in the classroom to the real-world. I have found that within the past 2 weeks, I have learned more about various IT tasks and operations than I would have within a traditional academic setting. I also hope this experience will expand my network and connect me with experienced IT professionals who can help me navigate the job market after graduation.

This experience will heavily impact my career path, as it has further solidified my career choices. As someone who is unsure of what field of IT I would like to pursue, I hope this experience will help me to choose which field best caters to my personal goals and abilities as well as reveal those I may want to avoid in my future job search. This experience will also give me an edge in the job market when it comes time to explore career options. The projects I have been partaking in so far have allowed me to develop certain skills that I can add to my resume to attract potential employers. In the end, it is my hope that this experience will equip me with the skills and confidence I need to embark onto a fulfilling and enjoyable career.

Simal Sami ’24
Information Technology

My internship for the Royal Experience Summer Internship Program is at Good Grief in Morristown, NJ. Good Grief is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide unlimited and free support to children, teens, young adults, and families after the death of an immediate family member through peer support programs, education, and advocacy. So far, I have been working at Good Grief for a couple weeks now and have mostly been setting up and facilitating support groups. Even with only being there a short amount of time, I already feel myself learning so much about the aftermath of losing a parent while still in childhood. In my future, I am looking to work with children who are experiencing PTSD and trauma. For young children, losing a direct parent or sibling is a traumatic event for them, especially depending on how the death of that individual occurred. Children could have witnessed their parent or sibling die and could develop anxiety, distress, sleep disturbances (nightmares), self-isolation, irritability, misperceived danger, etc. These are things I have read in textbooks and studied for exams, but I am starting to see these symptoms in real life talking to these children. Of course, it’s horrible for the people experiencing it but helpful exposure to me as a future helping professional looking to counsel people with these experiences.

One thing I really hope to learn about myself while at my internship is what age groups I enjoy the most and want to work with in the future. Good Grief is a terrific opportunity for me to narrow down what age populations I like. There are seven different support groups all with different ages from pre-school children to older adults. In the few different groups I have facilitated, I have enjoyed working with the teenagers the most. This age population experiences so many struggles already and the trauma of losing a parent makes these pivotal years unbearable. This is where they will start to experience significant milestones in their life without a parent being there, like getting their driver’s license, going to prom, graduating high school, going to college, etc. Because of these struggles, I find this age population to be the most fulfilling to work with. However, I want to remain open to every age group to see if my mind changes.

Nicole Gomber ’23
Counseling and Human Services

I am hoping to learn a variety of skills in marketing such as advertising, how to do market research, how to run a branding campaign, and how to use social media in a marketing context. So far in my internship, I do feel that I have been learning a mixed bag of skills that are needed for marketing and the working world in general. My internship is as a PR/Marketing intern for a nonprofit called the Borgen Project. The Borgen Project is a nonprofit that is dedicated to advocating for the eradication of global extreme poverty. This is done through advocacy to encourage Congress and other government bodies to pass bills that would allocate international affairs budget toward poverty reduction efforts. One of the biggest lessons I have learned so far is how to reach out to others. This is an important skill to have in marketing as communication with consumers is crucial to having a successful marketing campaign. I have also gotten experience in advertising to customers. In the case of this internship, I am not advertising to people to buy a product but instead to donate. This has been challenging to me because I don’t have the opportunity to maintain continued contact with the donors as clients. Regardless of this, I do feel like I am getting valuable experience from this internship. I am hoping that the variety of skills that I will hopefully learn from this internship will help to prepare me to take on any role in the marketing field that may present itself. As opposed to focusing heavily on one aspect of marketing and struggling if an opportunity in that field does not present itself, I want to have a wide net of skills that I can apply to any career opportunity.

My internship is remote so I don’t have many good pictures, but here’s a few:

Michael Walton ’23
Marketing

I have been interning at the Montgomery County Detective Bureau for almost an entire month and so far, I have learned so many crucial and interesting things about the criminal justice system and about my community as well. While my brain has been filled with so much knowledge already, I hope to learn more as the weeks carry on.

One of the main things I hope to learn more about is how intricate the criminal justice system is. Most people think the Detective Bureau is just one big unit; however, there are units in the Detective Bureau that I had not known about before I started working there, so I am excited to learn more about them and what their specific job is. The other interns and I cycle through each unit every two weeks, so I hope to be placed in one of those unfamiliar units soon.

I also hope to learn how I can make the biggest impact on the Detective Bureau in my own way. Sure, everyone can walk into that office with a major in Criminal Justice just like me, but I want to learn how to stand out. I want to learn how to bring something new to the table that will change the Detective Bureau or the criminal justice system in general for the better.

Gaining this knowledge will propel my career path into what I’m hoping will be new job opportunities that no one has really heard of before. For example, one of my main intended career paths is crime analysis. This is still a relatively new aspect in the system, when I tell some of the detectives what I’m doing and how I’m doing it, they have no idea what I’m talking about. Therefore, I’m positive that if I’m given the opportunity to offer something new like that, it will not only help those who have been working in the criminal justice system but will also help those who want to work in the system like me to have access to more career opportunities.

While I was stationed in the Forensics Unit, I got to go to the room where they test firearms that have been brought into evidence and look what I saw on one of the doors! One of the detectives in that unit actually went to Scranton!

 

 

Clare Maguire ’23
Criminal Justice

The most rewarding aspect of my CMEP internship has been connecting with people who are passionate about working for peace in Israel/Palestine or are interested in learning more. In personal emails, I appreciate the responses from interested individuals. One gentleman learned I go to Scranton and excitedly told me about the benefits of his own Jesuit education. In emailing various individuals about planning informative and transformational trip to Israel/Palestine, I am excited for all those who express interest in trip planning. After my incredible study abroad experience to the Holy Land, I know how important such a trip can be for one’s faith and awareness of the need for peace in the land. I’m further encouraged by the number of Americans who really do care and want to work for peace in Israel/Palestine. Seeing people outside CMEP as invested as those working here, I am hopeful that peace is possible.

While this hope makes my efforts rewarding, the slow work towards peace makes my internship challenging. I will finish at CMEP in just a week, but the work of CMEP will continue for years to come. My impatient heart seeking justice and peace now hates the long-term planning and the fact that so many non-profits are working on various aspects of peace in the Middle East but there is so much still to be done. I find it difficult to trust that my work this summer matters when I (obviously) do not see any immediate, positive, largescale change. However, I know that with dedicated individuals like those at CMEP and those educating themselves on Israel/Palestine, one day peace will not be a mere possibility, but a reality.

Kathleen Wallace ’23
Philosophy, Theology

The longer I work through my internship the more I have come to realize how much I have learned in just two months. In the past weeks I have been fortunate enough to accompany my mentor, Attorney Rose Randazzo, to several meetings, depositions, and site visits. These are the times when one meets interesting people: bank executives, realtors, contractors and engineers, judges and other attorneys, and even regular folks like me. Those encounters and experiences are the most rewarding pieces of my work—I learn best in the field. The simple facts that I did not know how to write a memo before June, or how I learned what happens at a deposition, are proof enough of the value of this internship.

However, with the benefits of working come challenges. The most frustrating part of my work so far has been experiencing the volatility of commercial development. I shadowed Attorney Randazzo through a real estate project from its incorporation to negotiation of purchase, development, and lease with a tenant. After a month of legal work on the project (and becoming rather attached to it) it completely fell through. I cannot express the disappointment I felt when I returned from lunch one day only to discover the project had been terminated. But we persevered and are moving in better directions with new ideas—as seen below. We’re currently working to donate some land to LHVA to give back to the community. I have been fortunate enough to follow the process.

The most valuable lesson I have learned from this came from Attorney Randazzo herself. She told me that, for every ten failed projects, only one usually passes through to finality. It is the nature of the business. But we must continue, going forward and learning from our failures and pushing to do better on the next attempt. But that lesson transcends work—it carries into life.

Sam Marranca ‘22
History

 

The most challenging part of my internship, and perhaps the most rewarding, has been learning how to become comfortable with failures. This summer, I faced a failure in the lab nearly every day. I quickly learned that failures are a normal part of science, and are to be expected when approaching an experiment. As the summer progressed I was able to bounce back from failures quicker each time. My ability to approach my setbacks with poise and an open mind improved, and I was able to see myself become a more resilient student.

Another rewarding part of my internship has been seeing my ideas come to life over the course of the summer. I have been planning and designing these experiments alongside Dr. Son since my freshman year at Scranton, so to be able to finally put my ideas to work has been incredibly rewarding. Additionally, working with Dr. Son and absorbing all the knowledge he has to share with me has been a privilege, and allowed me to grow as a scientist.

Watching myself mature both as a person and a scientist this summer has been an experience I am forever grateful for. This internship has taught me skills I can now relay into the classroom, and outside of the classroom in my extracurriculars. I am better able to accept mistakes and setbacks, and have learned that it is from these experiences I gain the most knowledge.

During my internship, I also had the privilege of teaching a class with Dr. Son to the students in the University of Success Program at Scranton. For this class I prepared a PowerPoint about crayfish for the students and organized three activities for the students with Dr. Son. Although not related to my research, this was a great experience where I was able to contribute to a such a special program.

Jillian Haller ’23
Neuroscience

My most rewarding experience at Manhattan Justice Opportunities this summer was shadowing intakes twice a week. During intakes, case managers gauge the mental state of participants and brainstorm ways to help them throughout their time at the center. From there, participants are given a variety of activities to help fulfill their mandates to complete their time at the organization. I received one-on-one experience with participants during this process, which I found extremely enjoyable. Being a part of a non-judgmental environment solely concerned with helping a marginalized community that is often criticized was immensely rewarding. Within the first week of shadowing, it was glaringly apparent how hesitant participants were to ask for help due to fear of judgment. I realized how quickly society criticizes those who have been incarcerated and the detrimental effects the judgment has on recidivism rates in the country. The fear of judgment often prevents those who may need help from asking for it which often further perpetuates the cycle of arrests and incarceration. I hope that as a lawyer, I will remember this experience and refrain from judgment for the betterment of my clients.

The most difficult, but most meaningful task I was given at MJO was to complete an annotated bibliography that described every mental health court and diversion program devoted to felony charges in the United States. To complete this project, I devoted a few hours a day to researching and calling different programs to find out their eligibility criteria and which communities they served. While I didn’t expect it to be difficult, many organizations were not available to speak with me and their websites were not updated. Those inconveniences made the research process take much longer than expected. I had to be very organized to ensure that I called organizations back during the times that were most feasible to them, in addition to checking newspaper articles for information that might have been left out on their website. During this process, I viewed a variety of different programs and read about how important restorative justice was to their participants and the way their methods differed from MJO’s methods. I realized while there are many practices of alternatives to incarceration, the overall goal is the same: to lower recidivism rates and produce a more humane and effective justice system.

Tiannah Adams ’22
Psychology