Local Internship Available
with ACA-VMC Available This Spring 2014
The Affordable Care Act Volunteers of Monroe County (ACAVMC)
are seeking students interested in assisting people navigate the new health
care laws and doing logistical work in reaching targeted audiences. Interns
will be instrumental in helping reach thousands of uninsured residents of
Monroe County. For the estimated 15,000 uninsured in Monroe County, obtaining
health insurance could be a life saver. At the least, it will improve the health
and financial situation of many individuals and families.
The ACA Volunteers of Monroe County (ACAVMC) is a non-profit
corporation chartered in Indiana that is dedicated to providing educational
assistance to residents on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)
law. The ACAVMC takes no political
position on the new law, but instead helps local community members understand
its mechanics and how to obtain benefits from the law’s provisions. To date, the ACAVMC has conducted six health
insurance community fairs, organized and moderated two health plan comparison
forums, provided outreach to the Latino community at a community health fair,
conducted call-out meetings, trained over 50 volunteers and reached out to the
community through print, radio and TV media.
Interns working with ACAVMC will gain valuable experience in
a wide range of community and organizational change efforts. Opportunities include community organizing, learning
how non-profits operate, conducting organizational assessment, determining
impact, developing effective marketing and outreach, as well as developing
educational strategies at the local level.
Various responsibilities interns may undertake include: collaboration
and outreach (with a variety of social service agencies, health care agencies,
employers, faith based organizations, etc.); providing one-on-one assistance to
the public at health insurance community fairs; speaking engagements;
publicity; staffing public information tables; posting informational flyers; canvassing
neighborhoods to reach underserved residents; assist in furthering social media
outreach; assist in planning public outreach events; and assist in collecting
data and evaluation of the organization’s efforts. Student interns would be
encouraged to contribute ideas to the organization, such as about how to
deliver effective assistance to hard-to-reach populations including graduate
students and non-traditional students as well as where to hold events. Campus
events, for instance, are encouraged. Because
we are a small organization, interns can have a large impact on what the
organization does and how we do it.
This experience could meet the needs of a semester
internship in a variety of disciplines/majors.
Due to lack of funding, all internships are unpaid. Interns will work between 10-20 hours per
week under the oversight and with support from Donyel Byrd, MSW, LCSW, Outreach
Coordinator Volunteer with the ACAVMC (also Associate Faculty with the Indiana
University School of Social Work) and David Meyer, ACAVMC President.
As a Licensed
Clinical Social Worker, Donyel Byrd has extensive experience in delivering
social services in Bloomington and surrounding communities. Ms. Byrd has worked in the areas of child
welfare, public schools, a variety of community advocacy efforts, and as an
Associate Faculty at the collegiate level.
Ms. Byrd has been a Field Instructor to countless students in
internships/practicum placements for 19 years.
She currently teaches a senior level undergraduate social work course in
community organizing.
David Meyer
has over 20 years of management expertise. He is a certified expert in IT
efficiency best practices and managed teams of 1-20 professionals that
maintained critical web and database systems. Mr. Meyer has mentored many
junior staff through the years. His 33 years working professionally was in
Washington, DC where is last position was as an expert advisor to the director
of the multi-billion dollar US EPA central IT division. He has a keen
interest in social work and community-building and he brings a structured yet
in innovative approach to meeting vexing challenges. Mr. Meyer is also a
board member of a local restorative justice organization, a keen writer and a
frequent contributor to all local news media.
For more information about the
organization, please see www.acavmc.org Contact Donyel Byrd (Email: donyel.byrd@gmail.com Phone: 812-322-2340) or Dave Meyer (Email: dwmeyerva@gmail.com Phone: 812-345-9124)
to discuss this opportunity. Potential interns will interview with Mr. Meyer
and Ms. Byrd to determine goodness of fit with the organization.
