Internship

I am entering my final year of graduate school which includes a final internship. I have been accepted as a Graduate Fellow with OneStar Foundation, a nonprofit that strengthens, convenes and  promotes the nonprofit sector in Texas. Among other things, OneStar manages the AmeriCorps grants in Texas and I will be working as part of that team on their Disability Inclusion projects. It is an exciting placement with some great learning opportunities! While I am doing my internship I will also be juggling my full time job at UT, a capstone class and my rugby schedule. 2014 is promising to be a busy year!

I was pleasantly surprised to have my own office at OneStar. The desk is actually the same design as the one I have at UT and so when Morey went in the office for the first time he knew right where to go!

OneStar has a suite of offices with a conference room, kitchen and individual offices. For the first week I decided to leave Morey in my office while I attended the various orientation sessions. I took off his vest so he knew he was staying a while but when I left my office Morey started to come with me. He didn't understand why I would leave him in a strange place and thought if I was leaving he should come too. When I came back to check on him between sessions, he was waiting by the door as if he was watching for me to come back. I could tell he was on edge about the whole experience because it was very different than what usually happens when he goes to work.

The next day I brought in a dog bowl, toys and a bone and he seemed to be a little more settled. He has already won over most of the staff members who were quite excited that they could come visit and play with him if he had his vest off. The office suite has a long hallway that is perfect for playing ball (if you can throw straight that is!). Good thing the office is full of dog lovers! Morey was even included on our official Facebook welcome!

A big OneStar WELCOME to our newest Graduate Fellows from The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work: Deepti Agarwal & Emily Shryock. And let's not forget their faithful sidekick, Morey the service dog! Together, they will help us revolutionize our work with Texas Connector and AmeriCorps*Texas. Welcome, ladies (and Morey)!

The one part of the office setup that is not good for Morey is the outside space. The building is built on a hill so the only part of the parking lot that is accessible are the accessible spaces. There are lots of nice wooded areas but I can't get close to them and I certainly am not going to let Morey loose to go "hurry" there.

The only accessible entrance to the building is through the parking area underneath the building. The main entrance has stairs but at the top of the stairs near the front door is a tiny landscaped area with a small tree. I have gone out the front entrance several times to let Morey "hurry" there so I don't have to take the elevator downstairs. People often give me funny looks as I sit at the top of the stairs and Morey isn't really thrilled about the small space and few options he has there. I am only in the office 2 days a week so Morey will just have to make do!

This is where you want me to go?

I am sure we will have more adventures to report about our time with OneStar!