“As a more reserved and independent individual, being exposed to office/workplace culture was beneficial in getting me more comfortable with networking, asking questions, and taking the initiative to do things like schedule meetings with different staff individuals to get a feel for what they do, how they can be of help to me and how I may be able to help them. Treated as a responsible adult, I was tasked with things like going to a grant information session and a funders forum without the company of a supervisor to get important information that would be helpful to their grant writing. Experiences like such gave helped me build confidence in myself as an adult in the workforce and helped me practice professionalism needed to interact with other working adults outside the workplace.”
— Esmeralda Alejo