Polk County Family & Community Outreach Internship Application

Thank you for considering the Polk County Family & Community Outreach Department for your internship. Before you complete our internship application, please take a moment to read through the information below that describes our program, expectations, and the internship process. 

 

About our Organization: 

The Polk County Family & Community Outreach Department (FCO) has been a leader in social service delivery in Polk County for the last decade. FCO coordinates a variety of programs in every community throughout the county. This includes the following programs:

The Resource Center assists families and individuals, helping to meet their basic needs and supporting them in achieving self-sufficiency. Services include:

• Emergency Food Boxes
• Hygiene Supplies
• Community Mailbox
• Diapers and Formula
• Emergency Financial Assistance

The Veteran Services Office works to ensure that Polk County veterans and their families receive all benefits provided by federal and state law. A veteran service officer is the advocate for veterans and their families. Services provided by appointment only include:

• VA Claims/compensation
• Surviving Spouse Benefits
• Burial, Marker, & Flag Applications
• Dependent Child Benefits
• Voc. rehab Applications
• VA Medical Enrollment
• Locating of Records

School-Based Mental Health (SBMH) works in partnership with local school districts. SBMH offers a wide range of services, including:

• Classroom presentations on character education, anti-bullying, problem solving, suicide prevention, and social skill development
• Individual emotional support
• Group and individual skill building
• Crisis support
• Parent conflict resolution
• Youth and parent support groups

Resource Navigators provide ongoing case management support to families referred by the Oregon Department of Human Services.

Homelessness Prevention and Outreach works to prevent and address homelessness for clients in Polk County. Services include:

• Street Outreach
• Connections to shelters and other resources
• Case Conferencing
• Partnership with the ROCC, DHS, Behavioral Health, Parole and Probation, Police, and more
• Connection to MWVCAA ARCHES

Early Learning and Family Engagement program supports families in connecting with resources, preparing children for kindergarten and providing evidence-based parenting education. Activities include:

• Family Fun Events
• Parent Education Workshops
• Professional Development for Local Professionals

Drug, Alcohol, Problem Gambling, and Suicide Prevention work to reduce and prevent the negative effects of drug, alcohol and gambling addiction through a variety of strategies including:

• Positive youth development
• Evidence based parenting classes
• Community assessments and surveys
• Media campaigns
• Supporting policy development
• Education and training

Service Integration facilitates collaboration among community partners to provide coordinated resources and information for individuals and families. We are agency and community partners expediting solutions by matching resources to clearly defined needs, while avoiding duplication of service. 

For more information about any of these programs, please visit our website at www.co.polk.or.us/fco

Internship Learning Objectives

Interns will gain a robust understanding of local community resources. This will be achieved by participating in community meetings such as Service Integration and working directly with their program coordinator in the area of interest to them. 

All interns will gain a basic understanding of how the Community Resource Center operates and the importance of collaboration in social service work in rural communities. 

Interns will learn about various outreach efforts and how to effectively build relationships and program awareness in the community.

Internship Expectations

• Intern will work with the assigned program coordinator to establish internship goals.
  • Goals will meet the requirements of the school they attend and meet the needs of the program coordinator that they are assigned to. 
  • This document will be signed by both the intern and the program coordinator
• Interns are expected to communicate with their program coordinator on a weekly basis to ensure that progress is being made toward internship goals. 
• Interns will complete a weekly log of their attendance onsite at the Polk Community Resource Center.
  • This log will be provided at the beginning of each term.
• Interns will provide all of the required documentation from their school to their program coordinator at least 5 business days before it is due.
• Due to the nature of the FCO department, interns will be expected to be self motivated and flexible when it comes to the day to day work of their internship.
  • There may be times when their program coordinator is not available and they will need to self start on tasks.

Internship Responsibilities

• Assist program coordinator with tasks related to the assigned program. Including, but not limited to:
  
  • Research related to specific topic
  • Creation of documents and/or marketing materials
  • Data entry
  • Phone and email communication with community partners
  • Assisting with event planning and execution
• Resource Center Front Desk Rotation
  
  • Answering phone calls 
  • Greeting Resource Center clients
  • Packing and providing food boxes and hygiene kits
  • Accessing the community mailbox program
• Community Meeting Attendance
  
  • All interns will attend at least one Service Integration meeting during their internship
  • Other meetings as determined by the program coordinator

Internship Requirements

• Interns must have an hour requirement of at least 100 hours per term to be considered for a placement within the FCO department
• Polk County offers only onsite internship opportunities.
  • Interns will be required to report to the Polk Community Resource Center for all of their internship hours.
  • There may be instances where interns are offsite at a community event or local meeting. These will be determined by the program coordinator overseeing the internship hours.
• Interns must provide documentation of the internship requirements from their college/university up front to ensure that program needs are being met. 
• Interns must provide contact information for their faculty advisor on campus.
• Interns must be in good academic standing and able to produce at least one letter of recommendation.

Internship Qualifications

• Preferred Majors: Public Health, social service related fields, business, communications
• Knowledge of computers and web based applications
  
  • Experience with Google Docs, Sheets, and Canva 
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Self motivated/directed
• Interest in social service related fields post graduation

How to Apply

• Complete the online application. Including uploading a resume, cover letter, and one letter of recommendation
• Applications will be accepted in the term prior to the requested internship  term
• Interns will be invited to interview for an internship position upon the completion of their application.
• Program coordinators will make internship selections in the term prior to the one that hours will be completed in. For example, interviews for fall internships will take place during the summer term. 

Internship Placements

FCO accepts a limited number of internship placements each term based on the needs of our program coordinators. Internships are available during Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer term. Priority will be given to internships with the most required hours onsite first. 

All Family & Community Outreach Department internships are unpaid positions. 

 

 

 

 

Internship Expectations

• All interns are required to complete a Polk Community Resource Center Orientation 
• Interns will abide by all policies and procedures outline in the Polk Community Resource Center Handbook including but not limited to policies including: 
  • Dress code
  • Cell phone policies
  • Customer Service Expectations
• Interns will communicate their schedule with their assigned Program Coordinator and work to set scheduled internship hours.
  • Changes to the regular schedule will be communicated ahead of time with assigned Program Coordinator who will help determine when hours can be made up. 
• Interns will complete a weekly time log to document the progress being made toward the goals outline with their assigned Program Coordinator
• Interns will provide all of the required documentation from their school to their program coordinator at least 5 business days before it is due.
• Due to the nature of the FCO department, interns will be expected to be self motivated and flexible when it comes to the day to day work of their internship. There may be times when their program coordinator is not available and they will need to self start on tasks.

Internship Responsibilities

Assist program coordinator with tasks related to the assigned program. Including, but not limited to:

• Research related to specific topic
• Creation of documents and/or marketing materials
• Data entry
• Phone and email communication with community partners
• Assisting with event planning and execution
• Resource Center Front Desk Rotation
  
  • Answering phone calls 
  • Greeting Resource Center clients
  • Packing and providing food boxes and hygiene kits
  • Accessing the community mailbox program
  • Community Meeting Attendance
• All interns will attend at least one Service Integration meeting during their internship
• Other meetings as determined by the program coordinator

Failure to show progress toward internship goals, poor attendance, or disregard for the policies and procedures of the Polk Community Resource Center could lead to immediate termination of the internship placement.

The person named above hereby acknowledges and declares that he or she has chosen to participate in an uncompensated internship program for Polk County.

While Polk County deeply appreciates this public service, it must require the following understandings and stipulations:

1. Working involves some degree of risk. Except with respect to injury or damage negligently inflicted by employees of Polk County, the person named above does hereby forever release, discharge and acquit Polk County and its officers, agents and employees from any and all claims for death, personal injury or damage to property of any nature which may arise from or in connection with his or her participation in this program.
2. Consent is given to Polk County to arrange for any first aid or ambulance service if an employee or agent of Polk County is in a position to do so. The person named above agrees to abide by guidelines explained to him or her by the person designated as supervisor of the program.
3. The person named above agrees not to use county vehicles or power equipment, not to use privately owned power equipment, and to use his or her personal vehicles only when traveling to and from the place where the volunteer services are to be performed.
4. The person named above recognizes that he or she is acting as a private and gratuitous volunteer in this program, not as an employee, agent, or contractor of Polk County. Accordingly, the intern acknowledges and consents, that to the extent permitted by law, the Intern’s health insurance, if any, shall be deemed primary in the case of injury or illness occurring during the course of internship activities.
5. The person named above agrees to abide by all conditions outlined in the Polk County Volunteer Policy.

As an employee, contractor, unpaid college intern, practicum student, or volunteer with Polk County, I agree to strictly abide by the following:

1. To abstain from discussing or disclosing material relating to any Polk County client outside the department or organizational structure for which I am working without a current Release of Information signed by the client or their legal guardian, or upon direction by County Counsel or court order.
2. If I am unclear as to my responsibility under this agreement, I will consult with the department director, manager, or supervisor who will determine how much, if any, of the above-described information may be released and to whom.
    

I understand that violation of this agreement could result in disciplinary action or termination of my status with Polk County and/or legal proceedings.

Overview
The purpose of this policy is to ensure the proper use of Polk County’s communications and information systems and to make users aware of what Polk County deems as acceptable and unacceptable use. All use of the County’s communications and information systems, including personal emails, are County property and will be managed as a component of the County information resource using routine backup and recovery procedures. Polk County reserves the right to amend this policy at its discretion. In case of amendments, users will be informed.

This document formalizes the policy for employees, students, contractors, or volunteers (“users”) regarding the use of communication technology resources including telephones, pagers, personal digital assistants (“PDAs”), email, computers, printers and other peripherals, fax machines, programs, Global Positioning Systems (“GPS”), data, local/wide area networks, and the Internet (“equipment”). It is the County’s position that this policy does not focus solely on computer-based technologies, but applies to all communication systems and equipment, with the exception of cell phone usage, which has a separate policy.

User Responsibilities
It is the responsibility of any person using the Polk County system to read, understand, sign, and follow this policy. In addition, users are expected to exercise reasonable judgment in interpreting this policy and in making decisions about the use of communication technology resources. Any person with questions regarding the application or meaning of this policy should seek clarification from appropriate management. Failure to observe this policy may subject individuals to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.

Unacceptable Uses
Unless such use is deemed reasonably related to a user’s job by their supervisor, it is unacceptable for any person to use Polk County communications technology and/or equipment:

• For any political purpose
• For any commercial purpose
• To send threatening, intimidating, or harassing messages, whether sexual or otherwise
• To access or share sexually explicit, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate materials
• To infringe on any intellectual property rights
• To engage in non-business activities that unnecessarily tie up business practices
• To gain, or attempt to gain, unauthorized access to any computer or network for any use that causes interference with or disruption of network users and resources, including propagation of computer viruses or other harmful programs
• To intercept communications intended for other persons
• To libel or otherwise defame any person
   

Personal Use
Although the County’s communication system and equipment are meant for business use, limited and reasonable use of equipment for occasional personal used that does not interfere with or does not constitute “unacceptable uses” as defined above or result in any additional costs or loss of time or resources, is permitted in accordance with County policy.

The County allows reasonable personal use if certain guidelines are adhered to:

• Personal use of equipment should not interfere with work
• Personal use of equipment should be limited to infrequent incidental use
• Personal equipment must also adhere to the guidelines of this policy
• The forwarding of chain letters, junk mail, inappropriate jokes and executables is strictly forbidden
• No long distance telephone calls or faxes are to be made without pre-approval from the employee’s supervisor 

All messages distributed via the County’s email system, including personal emails, are Polk County property. Detailed logs of all internet and telephone use are kept and may be monitored without prior warning to the user. While employees have the ability to access their email from home or smart phones, it is not allowed without prior authorization from their department head.

Data Confidentiality
In the course of performing their jobs, County users often have access to confidential or proprietary information, such as personal data about identifiable individuals or commercial information about business organizations. Under no circumstances is it permissible for users to acquire access to confidential data unless such access is designated as a requirement of their job. Under no circumstances may users disseminate any confidential information that they have rightful access to, unless such dissemination is required by their jobs or otherwise permitted by law. Any user found to have violated policies established by HIPPA (regarding privacy of medical information), may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal and/or legal action. Any used found to have violated state laws regarding confidentiality may be subject to supervisor notification and potential disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal and/or legal action.

No Expectation of Privacy
Information systems and equipment are the property of Polk County. All systems and equipment are to be used in conformance with these policies. The County retains control regarding the use of each user’s equipment and all contents stored thereon. The County Administrator and Elected Officials within their respective department, including the Sheriff and District Attorney, have the right to monitor user computer communications and may ask assistance from Information Services in order to do so. Users should be aware that Information Services, under the direction of these officials, in order to ensure proper network operations may routinely monitor network traffic and computer usage.

Legal Requirements
The following rules are imposed by law and are to be strictly adhered to. It is prohibited to:

• Send or forward emails containing libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist, or obscene remarks.
  • If you receive an email of this nature, you must promptly notify your supervisor
• Forge or attempt to forge email messages
• Disguise or attempt to disguise your identity when sending mail
• Send email messages using another person’s email account
   

Discipline
If there is evidence that a user is not adhering to the guidelines set forth in this policy, the County reserves the right to take disciplinary action up to and including the dismissal and/or legal action as deemed appropriate. Users who are found to have violated this policy may be held financially responsible for any expenses incurred during anything unauthorized use. The County reserves the right to suspend or terminate County issued equipment or privileges at any time, without prior notice to the user.

Declaration
I have read, understand and acknowledge receipt of the Polk County Communication Technology policy. I agree to comply with the guidelines set forth in this policy and understand that failure to do so may result in disciplinary and/or legal action.

Please include the following documents with your application.

• Current Resume
• Cover Letter: In your letter, please be sure to highlight your skills and what interests you most in completing your internship with the Polk County Family & Community Outreach Department
• Letter of Recommendation: Your letter of recommendation should be a non-relative professional who can speak to your skills as a student or in the workforce.