Caroline Glaser: My First Quarter as a Community Fellow
The LSB Community Fellows Program has been a tremendous opportunity. It has been so valuable to apply my skills in research and economics to real-world problems as a public policy intern as well as partake in community-based learning with my fellow peers in the fellows program. This quarter, I have already been able to learn so much about the San Jose community and how different issues are impacting it. From my first day at Silicon Valley Council of Nonprofits (SVCN), I have been welcomed by the team and learned so much about the nonprofit industry and how it functions in the Silicon Valley.
My main goal coming into this program was to have the chance to go outside of the Santa Clara University bubble and learn more about the broader Santa Clara Community and the issues they face. One of my most valuable first experiences in my role at SVCN has been the opportunity to engage in their policy efforts this November during the elections. It was so fascinating to learn how this organization thinks about policy and how they as a non-profit and a representative of the Silicon Valley nonprofit leaders discern what are most important issues to their community.
I have learned so much about how non-profits function and the issues they face specifically in the Silicon Valley. Looking forward to the rest of the school year, I really hope to help build out long-term and valuable resources for SVCN that can be used in their community engagement and public policy efforts for years to come. Being a LSB Community Fellow presents such an invaluable opportunity for me to learn and grow as a student and community member and I am so grateful to be a part of it. This quarter has highlighted how important it is to share what I am learning with the Santa Clara community and my peers in community fellows, as well as learning from the other community fellows.