A range of
emotions stirs within me as I write this post. It is now the halfway point of
my internship experience with the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty
(SERP). This week was filled with deeper investigations into my project and spending
more time assimilating into the Hyderbadi life—the culture that makes this city
standout in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Slowly but surely, I’m finding ways to
make sure that I take in a holistic understanding of the community around me.
Now in the second week, I am really falling into a daily routine: wake up by 9:30pm for breakfast of tea with bread and jam (the customary idli with sambar and peanut-tasting chutney was too rich and heavy for me to be hungry enough to eat another hearty meal by lunchtime);
spend 30 minutes reading the Deccan Chronicle and the Times of India—catching up on local,
state, federal and global news; then jump right into the tasks for the
assignment, continuing from the day before.
My project
involves analyzing the practices of the US and other countries in regards to
vocational rehabilitation and employment placement programs. Without a
formalized system for assessing people with disabilities and placing them into
employment opportunities, SERP is searching for a way to create an effective
and efficient program. Thus, I have been researching existing tools and
programs, particularly in the US, on how to evaluate and assess the abilities
of people with disabilities. From this information, I will next work on
developing a streamlined program to implement in SERP’s efforts to assist
people with disabilities and those in rural communities.
It has been a great experience working independently on the assigned projects--from developing research questions, to searching for credible sources and information across the globe, to analyzing and developing further questions to follow up with our coordinators at SERP. I have really enjoyed this process and it has been great to see myself grow into being capable of taking on self-directed work, being accountable with myself and with the organization directors on my progress.
With only two weeks left, I work with an enthusiastic fervor to make the most of my time here in Hyderabad and in my work with SERP.
They seem to put a lot of trust in you! It must be exciting to be able to use your expertise and research to come up with a system that can be used to help people with disabilities find work. You can do it, keep up the great progress!
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