Assignment 1: The Scavenger Hunt

Human Ecology students work independently to

help solve local challenges.

Undergraduate Internships Unite Cnllpgp Initiati

A new siininicr internship program recruits iindergraduate students to apply the hndings of Ihinuin F.cology research to eoniiiuinities in New York—ultimately bringing together the college's education, research, and outreach initiatives.

Last summer, two students participatetl in the program—;i partnership with Oirnell Ciiopcrative I'.xtension. Julie Luntigren worked with Kosali Simon, assistant professor ot policy analysis and management, on her efforts to explain the Medieare prescription drug hcnefit to area senior citizens. And Ahssa Ritter worked with C^hristine Olson, professor of nutritional sciences, and Nancy Wells, associate professor of design and environmental analysis, on environmental factors that lead to obesity, particularly in pregnant women.

Unlike many other summer jobs, the program is set up to give students the opportunity to work independently to address a challenge facing central New York communities.

"The program was really a way to give students a chanee to dive in and make a difference," saiti Josejihine Swanson, assistant dean and associate director of Cornell Ciooperative l'extension. "Its a fantastic way to use our research to help local communities and educate our students at the same time."

This summer, the eoilege has plans to expand the program to include six interns in total, inehuhng positions to help with obesity in low-ineoine children and to connect Jisadvantaged youth with nature. > > >

22 Human Ecology • Cornell University

Helping seniors navigate Medicare Part D

1/iinilgren started her internship with ;i lofty task—trying to help seniors l)ettcr untlcrstnnd the prescription drug benefit that's part of the federni Medicare program. The plan, v\ hich otters ¡irescriptinn drug coverage to millions ot seniors who were previously not covered, in\()hes dozens of New York-specific choices and complex benefits that start and stop at various times through the ye;ir.

l.undgrcns main responsibilities inckiiled connecting with count;' offices interested in expanding their Medicare Part D eilueation programs, and then creating brochures based to help educate seniors about the benefit.

"She served as our eyes and ears in the community, and rcidly got 11 sense of what the counties neeiied," said Robert Harris, a registered pharmacist and project manager for the C'URxKD Medicare Part D enrollment proiect. "That alloweil us to fill in those gaps."

I.undgren said the experience proviiied opportunities she's never had before— t̂o work independently on a major social issue and have a chance to make a real difference in the lives ot people.

"By raising awareness about Medicare Part D's complexities, we boped to help seniors get the most out of the benefit ;itid optimize its efficiency in tbe community," she said."T he idea was that by giving tbem a sense of the larger picture, they would make more educated choices."

There was one other lesson she learned over the summer—one that will stick with her for a lifetime. "I learned tti start saving for retirement as scion as possible," sbe siud.

Highlighting exercise opportunities

Alissa Ritter's cbarge for the summer was also an ambitious one: finding ways to encourage exercise in (ühenungo County, a rural community about 50 miles east of Ithaca. 11er work was part of an initiative called Environmental Strategies to Reduce Obesity—an effort to examine ways to use local settings to encourage healthy lifestyles.

Working under the direction of Olsen and Weils, Ritter first took an inventory- of the physical activity opportunities in Chcnango C>)unty, then created a brochure w itb a map that encouraged local residents to take atlvantage ot them.

In addition, she conducted ;i surve\' ot 300 ( !heiiango County residents to find out it diey could name three places to be physically active. She found only two-thirds could name three places, and many participants named activities that would not classit>' as exercise within their rural communities.

"Their concept of physical activity was fairly skewed," she said. "There really weren't gv'ms, and a lot of people just didn't know where to go to exercise."

Keith Severson, executive director of (^henango ('ounty Cooperative Kxtension, also worked closely with Riiter to help make contacts in the community.

"We looked at her just as we woultl a regular employee," he said. "We spent some time introtlucing her lo our network in the area, and then we just lei her go. It was mueh different than our normal internships because she was responsible for a body of work tbat had a specific important influence."

For Ritter, the chance to huild relationships in a community and help them to solve a serious problem was rewarding. "Its die most freedom I've ever had in an internship, anti I really felt like I was making a difference." «

Expanding outreach

Josephine Swanson ias55@cornell,edu

Human Ecology and Cornell Cooperative Extension vifill sponsor six interns for the summer of 2008. The internships, followed by the cooperating faculty members, are:

Internship in Breast Cancer and E n v i r o n m e n t a l Risk Factors: Working on an intervention project to prevent weight gain in adult working women. (Carol Devine, associate professor. Nutritional Sciences)

Internship in Urban Forest Adventures: Connecting disadvantaged youth with nature, (Nancy Wells, associate professor. Design and Environmental Analysis)

Internship in Fiber Science and Apparel Design: Helping assess the impact of textiles and apparels—from design to production, distribution, and end-of-life—on the environment, (Charlotte Coffman, senior extension associate. Fiber Science & Apparel Design)

Internship in Nutritional Sciences: improving the health of low income children by focusing on parenting, physical activity, and food choice. (Jamie Dollahite, associate professor. Nutritional Sciences, and Katherine Dickin, research associate. Nutritional Sciences)

Internship in Family Life Development: Designing and evaluating interventions for new parents to promote maternal well-being, effective care-giving, and healthy child development. (John Eckenrode, professor, Human Development, and Charles Izzo, research associate. Family Life Development Center)

Internship in Youth Mentoring: Linking youth with adult mentors in rural communities. (Stephen F, Hamilton, professor. Human Development, and Mary Agnes Hamilton, senior research associate, Human Development)

Volume 35, Number 1 • May 2008 23