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Alliance Hall
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Building a Better Future for Allentown’s Youth – Alliance Hall (click to view poster)
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Student Interns:
Kayliyah Forbes, DeSales University Division of Nursing
Morgan Fritts, Moravian University School of Nursing and Public Health
Angelina Nehme, Moravian University School of Nursing and Public Health
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Academic Preceptor:
Tricia Bernecker, PhD, RN, DeSales University
Mary Ellen Miller, PhD, RN, PHNA-BC, DeSales University
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Community Preceptors:
Tina Amato, MS, RD, LDN, Nutrition and Physical Activity Manager, Allentown Health Bureau
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Community Site:
The Alliance Hall Summer Recreation Program in Allentown is a collaborative effort by several organizations. A free program, it runs in June and July, Monday through Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It offers engaging activities such as arts and crafts, swimming, and field trips, and provides free breakfast and lunch. The program can register up to 150 children aged 7 to 13. Approximately 75 children attend daily.
Team's Experience:
The Bridging the Gaps students spent part of the summer internship working collaboratively with camp staff at the Alliance Hall Summer Recreation Program. Interns assisted with arts and crafts, outside activities such as playground time, program activities, field trips, and swimming at Mack pool. They created an age-appropriate presentation on cardiovascular health with interactive activities for the children to learn and create.
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Intern Reflections:
"The BTG interns at Alliance Hall learned how to manage several different age groups of children. They also connected how social determinants of health affect the children of the camp. Alliance Hall is a great program for the youth of Allentown to escape from any stress or struggles they face at home.”
Casa Guadalupe
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Building a Better Future for Allentown’s Youth – Casa Guadalupe (click to view poster)
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Student Interns:
Kayliyah Forbes, DeSales University Division of Nursing
Morgan Fritts, Moravian University School of Nursing and Public Health
Angelina Nehme, Moravian University School of Nursing and Public Health
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Academic Preceptor:
Tricia Bernecker, PhD, RN, DeSales University
Mary Ellen Miller, PhD, RN, PHNA-BC, DeSales University
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Community Preceptor:
Andrea Wilson, DHSc, MEd, Director of Education, Casa Guadalupe
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Community Site:
Casa Guadalupe is a nonprofit social services organization in Allentown that offers a variety of programs and resources for children, youth, adults, and elderly residents living in the community. Casa Guadalupe works in partnership with other organizations to provide programs such as WIC, after-school K-12 education, free summer meals for youth and the elderly, and social services, including help with rent, mortgage payment, and food. All the programs are free to the community.
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Team's Experience:
The Bridging the Gap students spent part of their internship assisting Casa Guadalupe staff with lesson planning, classroom management, execution of daily lessons, and providing engaging activities and lessons on cardiovascular health, oral health, and smoking cessation. They performed a community assessment that involved interviewing elderly residents in Spanish and distributed oral health supplies to youth and the elderly. The interns also helped to create floats for the float parade for Casa Guadalupe’s annual carnival on August 3rd.
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Intern Reflections:
"The BTG interns learned how to professionally collaborate with other disciplines. They also learned how to relate and talk to young groups of children. Additionally, they learned how to lesson plan and keep children engaged with learning.”
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Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley (PNLV)
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It Takes a Village: The Inside Scoop on Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley (click to view poster)
Student Interns:
Rana Moawad, Temple University Lewis Katz School of Medicine
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Academic Preceptor:
Tricia Bernecker, PhD, RN, DeSales University
Mary Ellen Miller, PhD, RN, PHNA-BC, DeSales University
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Community Preceptor:
Hasshan Batts, DHSc, MSW, Director, PNLV
Jeani Garcia, Violence Prevention and Reentry Manager, PNLV
Abby S. Letcher, MD, Neighborhood Health Centers of the Lehigh Valley
Laya Lopez, Project Coordinator, PNLV
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Community Site:
Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley (PNLV) is a Black-led, anti-racist, liberation-based grassroots community organization led and staffed by neighborhood residents in Allentown. PNLV comprises a unique network whose role in our community is to promote consistent public health messaging delivered by trusted community messengers. The mission of PNLV is to foster cooperation among residents within the Greater Lehigh Valley to create safe, healthy, vibrant, inclusive neighborhoods where children succeed in school and where adults and families thrive and want to live.
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Team's Experience:
The Bridging the Gaps student intern worked with community members at Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley (PNLV) to develop various programs surrounding cardiovascular and oral health lectures, smoking cessation presentations and brochures, and health kit distributions, and provided community members with free health and blood pressure screenings. The BTG intern also planned and hosted a Stop the Bleed event with the local hospital’s emergency medicine and trauma departments and the police department to discuss gun violence prevention, offer hands-on training on how to reduce bleeding, and to provide gun locks. The intern was also involved in various events surrounding racism, interprofessional training, and the enriching children’s summer programs at PNLV.
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Intern Reflections:
“Throughout my time at PNLV, I have developed a deep understanding of the Allentown community and what it means to be a part of the PNLV family. Throughout my time at PNLV, I have enjoyed forming connections with the staff and community members and learning from one another through interprofessional dialogues and community outreach. Learning about the community health needs has been rewarding, and I have enjoyed planning community events to educate on heart health, oral health, smoking cessation, and the Stop the Bleed event.”