Internship Plan
Monique McLeary
The African American Male Initiative
600 West Terrell Street, Greensboro, NC 27406
Preceptor: Rashard Jones
December 2, 2016
Signed by:
Student: Monique McLeary Date: 12/04/2016
Agency Preceptor: ____________________________________ Date: __________
Co-Preceptor: ________________________________________ Date: __________
Internship Coordinator: ________________________________ Date: __________
The African American Male Initiative Internship McLeary
Table of Contents
PART 1: PROBLEM DEFINITION AND DESCRIPTION...................................................................3
THE HEALTH PROBLEM............................................................................................................................................ 3
THE NON-HEALTH PROBLEM..................................................................................................................................4
RELEVANCY..................................................................................................................................................................5
SWOT ANALYSIS........................................................................................................................................................6
PART 2: PROBLEM ANALYSIS............................................................................................................. 8
CONCEPTUAL MAP OF CHILDHOOD FOOD INSECURITY.......................................................................................8
INTERNSHIP OBJECTIVES........................................................................................................................................12
PART 3: INTERNSHIP ACTIVITIES PLAN/METHODS................................................................13
PARENT/GUARDIAN INTERVIEWS........................................................................................................................14
NUTRITION EDUCATION WORKSHOPS.................................................................................................................15
COMMUNITY/HOME GARDENING WORKSHOPS.................................................................................................15
PARTNERSHIPS WITH LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS AND GROCERY STORES.........................................................16
INTERNSHIP TIMELINE:..........................................................................................................................................16
REFERENCES............................................................................................................................................................. 18
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Part 1: Problem Definition and Description
The Health Problem
In 2014, approximately 18% of all North Carolinians and 19% of all Guilford County
residents were food insecure (“Map the Meal Gap,” 2014). Per Feeding America’s
adaptation of the USDA’s definition of food security, food insecurity refers to the “lack
of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members
and limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods. Food insecure
children are those children living in households experiencing food insecurity.” (Coleman-
Jensen, Gregory, & Rabbitt, 2016; “Map the Meal Gap,” 2014). Roughly 23% of children
living in Guilford County are considered food insecure (“Map the Meal Gap,” 2014);
that’s approximately 1 in 5 Guilford County children.
A food desert is defined as “a place where more than a third of residents live more
than a mile from a grocery store and at least 20% live under the poverty line” (“Oasis
Grows in Greensboro Food Desert,” 2014). In 2013, the USDA found 24 census tracts in
Guilford County that were considered food deserts, and in 2015 the Greensboro-High
Point area was ranked number 5 among the top 25 metropolitan areas with the “highest
rates of food hardship for households with children” (Food Research and Action Center,
2016).
The mission of the African American Male Initiative (AAMI) program is to
“improve the emotional and social well-being of African-American and other boys at
Wiley, Jackson and Smith using mentoring as a powerful and personal tool to enhance
the lives of youth” (“About Us,” n.d.); addressing food insecurity falls within the scope
of this mission. Hunger and malnutrition has negative implications for children’s
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physical, intellectual and emotional development (Cook & Jeng, 2009). According to the
Hunger in Our Schools report (2015) published by the No Kid Hungry nonprofit
organization, “84% of principals say that students are coming to school hungry because
they don’t get enough to eat at home, and 6 in 10 (59%) educators say “a lot or most”
children in their school rely on school meals as their primary source of nutrition” (No Kid
Hungry, 2015). Additionally, research has found that children who are food insecure have
poorer outcomes in academic performance and social and emotional health than children
who are food secure (Fiese, Gundersen, Koester, & Washington, 2011). One study found
that the transition from food insecurity to food security was found to have positive social
and academic impacts on children (Fiese et al., 2011; Jyoti, Frongillo, & Jones, 2005).
These outcomes confirm the necessity from programming aimed at reducing food
insecurity and improving the nutritional health of the AAMI boys.
The Non-Health Problem
Limited access to resources and lack of social support are the non-health problems that
will be addressed by this internship project with the AAMI program. The intersectionality
of poverty, race, and food insecurity disproportionately impacts low income Black and
Latino communities in America. In 2007, roughly 40% of all Americans living below the
poverty line were also food insecure, with Black and Latino Americans making up 24.5%
and 21.5% of that population, respectively (Cook & Jeng, 2009). This is relevant to the
AAMI’s health issue of nutrition as the program serves majority Black and Latino boys
who attend Title 1 schools in Guilford County. These schools are typically located in low
income neighborhoods that are also classified as food deserts. Fostering social support
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networks and increasing access to resources in these communities may lower the impact
of childhood food insecurity on the boys in the AAMI program (Meisenheimer, 2016).
Relevancy
Currently, AAMI has a fully stocked food pantry and a community garden that is
available to families served by the program. However, there is a need for a more
sustainable solution to food insecurity in the community that will positively impact the
educational, emotional, and social well-being of the AAMI boys. To be sustainable, the
solution must work to improve access to grocery stores, increase utilization of
government assistance programs such as SNAP, encourage home gardening, provide
nutrition education, and support employment opportunities for AAMI families.
As the program involves working with minors, measures to maintain safety and
ethical integrity will be employed throughout every stage of the project. These measures
will work to ensure the safety of the students in the programs and the safety of all other
students in the schools. Some of these measures that will be taken to ensure the safety of
the AAMI boys and to maintain ethical integrity are 1) conducting needs assessments
involving parents/guardians to ensure that they are on board with the project and will
provide consent for their child to participate, 2) maintain confidentiality of all
information provided and 3) practice transparency throughout the internship process.
These measures – along with measures already in place by the AAMI program – will
work to support of the project’s ethical integrity and minimize any threats of ethical
concerns.
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Table 1. SWOT Analysis
Strengths
● Community Support● Financial support from local and
national organizations● Operational/programming support
(CIS of Greater Greensboro)
Weaknesses
● Adapting to transitions● Maximizing all available resources
Opportunities
● Community-wide support● Additional partnerships with
community organizations
Threats
● Limited space● Timing● Community participation
The AAMI program has the capacity to begin the process of addressing food
insecurity in the communities it serves. Some of the strengths of the program includes 1)
national backing by the Communities in Schools organization under which the program is
ran, 2) support and funding from local and national organizations such as the United Way
of Greater Greensboro and Syngenta Crop Protection and 3) community wide recognition
and appreciation. These strengths will be useful in bridging gaps in resources and support
that the program may otherwise face in tackling the issue of food insecurity. Further,
because of these strengths and others, the AAMI program has the opportunity to gain
additional support and backing from other organizations such as grocery stores,
community cooperatives, etc. to create sustainable change in the community.
As mentioned by Mr. Jones and Mr. Murphy (Site Coordinator at Jackson Middle
School), the organization also has some challenges, two of which are 1) difficulties
adapting as students transition out of the program to different cities and/or schools and 2)
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maximizing the utility of all available resources to support the program and its mission.
These challenges affect the program’s ability to maximize the services available to the
AAMI boys. However, these challenges are currently being addressed and will continue
to be addressed throughout the internship with AAMI.
Part 2: Problem Analysis
Food insecurity is an element of material hardship that is not adequately captured by
income and poverty alone (Ashiabi & ONeal, 2008). Although poverty has been linked to
food insecurity, it does not always predict food insecurity; not all families living in
poverty are food insecure (Ashiabi & ONeal, 2008). Beyond poverty, there are several
other behavioral, social, environmental, and political factors that contribute to childhood
food insecurity. According to a report on childhood food insecurity by Craig Gundersen
and James P. Ziliak (2014), some of these factors include mother’s health and substance
abuse, housing instability, family structure, school nutrition and scheduling (i.e. summers
and weekends), and racial disparities (Hadley, Tessema, & Muluneh, 2012).
Conceptual Map of Childhood Food Insecurity
The conceptual map below (Figure 1) illustrates the relationships between some of the
behavioral, social, environmental, and political contributing factors of childhood food
insecurity. This internship will focus primarily on the behavioral, social, and
environmental factors outlined in the conceptual map.
As mentioned in part 1, the AAMI program serves minority boys who attend Title
1 schools and live in low-income communities in Guilford County. Disparities in food
security are prevalent in these communities. In 2014, over two thirds of food insecure
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children were children of color and approximately 35% of households headed by single
mothers were food insecure (Ashiabi & ONeal, 2008; Meisenheimer, 2016). In the
immigrant community, childhood food insecurity is even more disparate as “children in
immigrant families have especially high rates of very low food security in comparison to
children in nonimmigrant families” (Meisenheimer, 2016). High prevalence of violence
and drug activity in these low-income communities may also impact food security.
According to a study of mothers of young children who were participating in public
assistance programs, exposure to violence negatively impacted mental health and
subsequently affected the mothers’ ability to afford food (Chilton, Rabinowich, & Woolf,
2014). In addition, these low-income communities in Guilford County are often located
in food deserts and are spatially disadvantaged in terms of access to fresh foods. School
nutrition guidelines and scheduling may also limit the nutritional health of boys in the
AAMI program (Hadley et al., 2012). Although free and reduced breakfast and lunch is
provided to the majority of students in these Title 1 schools, the foods served may lack
adequate substance and nutritional value (Freeman, 2007; Story, 2009). In addition, since
children consume a large portion of their daily food intake at school, the weekends and
holidays presents a real concern for the worsening of childhood food insecurity,
especially for minority children and children in low-income families (Hadley et al.,
2012). The relationships and interconnectedness of these contributing factors are outlined
in the following conceptual map below and discussed in the accompanying narrative.
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Figure 1 Conceptual Map of AAMI Childhood Food Insecurity
The target behaviors of this internship are food shopping choices and eating
habits. However, targeting these behaviors alone limits the scope, impact, and
sustainability of the internship project, and could potentially place blame for childhood
food insecurity on the individuals served by the AAMI program. Hence, in considering
the behavioral factors that affect childhood food insecurity, it is important acknowledge
the presence of social and environmental factors that limits individual choice. It is also
important to acknowledge the presence of “food oppression” in minority and low-income
communities (Freeman, 2007). “Food oppression” refers to the limitation of food choices
that is imposed on low-income minority communities by the fast-food industry and
encouraged by political systems (Freeman, 2007). Although food oppression will not be
fully addressed with this internship project, understanding this concept allows us to see
beyond individual choice as a sole predictor of food security; there are other elements at
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play that encourage spatial inequality and limits the food choices available to minority
individuals in low-income communities (Waity, 2016).
The primary environmental factor to be targeted by this internship is limited
access to resources; which is directly impacted by other environmental factors such as
geographic location and lack of transportation; and social factors such as family income
and lack of social support. Lack of/poor social support network is the primary social
factor that this internship with address. Improving social support networks and increasing
access to resources simultaneously may lower the impact of childhood food insecurity on
the boys in the AAMI program (Meisenheimer, 2016). Although family income and the
stigma associated with being low-income/seeking resources are key factors that
contribute to childhood food insecurity, they will not be addressed in this internship due
to limited time and resources.
Additionally, while the internship project aims to address some of the behavioral,
social, and environmental factors of childhood food insecurity, there are other factors that
will not be addressed due to limited time/resources and the complexity of the issue. Some
of these factors that are acknowledged but won’t be fully addressed include political
factors (i.e. public school nutrition, food policy, and federal nutrition program policies)
and other social factors like poverty, unemployment, and food oppression. Beyond this
internship, addressing these factors in conjunction with all other factors that contribute to
childhood food insecurity is necessary and vital to sustainably reduce the prevalence and
impact of childhood food insecurity in our communities.
One example of a program that aims to reduce childhood food insecurity in the
target community is the BackPack Beginnings program. Through a partnership with
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Communities in Schools of Greater Greensboro, the BackPack Beginnings program aims
to fill the “weekend food gap for children in need” by delivering weekly food filled
backpacks to children in 26 Guilford County schools (“CIS of Greater Greensboro,” n.d.,
“Food BackPack Program,” 2014). This program feeds up to 1,600 Guilford County
children each weekend (“Food BackPack Program,” 2014), however it cannot function
alone to reduce the impact of childhood food insecurity in these communities. Therefore,
the primary objectives of this internship (outlined below) are focused on promoting
sustainable solutions to childhood food insecurity in the AAMI community through
collaboration with other programs such as BackPack Beginnings.
Internship Objectives
1. Improve the nutritional health of boys served by the AAMI program.
2. Promote sustainable food practices such as home gardening and healthier grocery
shopping strategies.
3. Promote partnerships with community organizations to address childhood and
community-wide food insecurity.
4. Establish a strong support network for AAMI families.
Part 3: Internship Activities Plan/Methods
Some of the coping methods used by families at risk of food insecurity includes
“pawning possessions, ‘dumpster diving,’ eating food that is past its sell-by date, putting
off bills, and spending less on medications or heating and cooling” (Gundersen & Ziliak,
2014). Although these strategies may be effective at temporarily alleviating household
food insecurity, the lasting implications of food insecurity for children in these
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households may persist. More sustainable strategies have been identified to help reduce
the prevalence, impact, and burden of childhood food insecurity in low-income
communities. Some of these strategies include: increase access to and knowledge of
federal nutrition and emergency food assistance programs, nutrition education, and
community partnerships to increase access to foods (Meisenheimer, 2016; “Oasis Grows
in Greensboro Food Desert,” 2014). These strategies, along with others, are outlined in
the internship logic model found in Table 2.
A logic model is a visual tool used to outline and organized key elements of a
process or program (Knowlton & Phillips, 2009). More specifically, a program logic
model records the inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes of a specific program and
serves as a tool for designing, implementing, and evaluating that program (Knowlton &
Phillips, 2009). The process of designing and refining a program logic model requires
keen attention to all program components, including objectives and measurable
outcomes. This attention to detail encourages thoughtful and careful decision making
about what to do and how to do it. The logic model below highlights the functional
components and outcomes to be measured for the childhood food insecurity internship
project with the African American Male Initiative. Designing this program logic model
required keen attention to detail as well as an awareness of the resources available,
external factors that may affect the outcome, and the assumptions that were made in
developing the internship project.
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Table 2. Internship Logic ModelInputs:
Resources dedicated to or consumed
by the internship
ActivitiesMethods of fulfilling
the internship objectives using
inputs
Outputs:The measurable products of internship activities
Outcomes:Results anticipated as consequences of the outputs
Short Long
Funding
Intern
Program personnel
Partners
Space
Materials
Informal interviews with AAMI parents/guardians
Nutrition education workshops
Community/home gardening workshops
Partner with local organizations and grocery stores
10 AAMI parents/guardians attend
15 AAMI boys and their parents attend
10 AAMI parents/guardians attend
Establish partnerships with 2 local organizations and grocery stores
Increased parent/guardian knowledge of childhood nutrition and its impact on development
Increased parent/guardian knowledge of available food resources in the community
Increased community partnership and support
Better eating habits for AAMI boys
Improved cognitive, social and academic performance of AAMI boys
Increased utilization of community resources
Increase access to fresh foods
AssumptionsParents will participate
External FactorsPolicy, culture, school nutrition
Parent/Guardian Interviews
Interviews with AAMI parents/guardians will provide information about the prevalence
of childhood food insecurity within the program and an understanding of what the
community needs. Parents/guardians will be recruited by mail or email with a letter
explaining the project goals and activities. Data from these interviews will be used to
assess the prevalence of childhood food insecurity in the program and to plan the other
internship activities. Interviews will also set the stage for transparent communications
throughout the internship process.
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Nutrition Education Workshops
Nutrition education workshops will be targeted to both AAMI boys as well as AAMI
parents and guardians. These comprehensive workshops will feature content about the
importance of childhood nutrition, how to shop more strategically (couponing, reading
labels, etc.), how to prepare time and cost effective meals for children, how to utilize
federal nutrition and emergency food programs, and how to maximize use of all resources
available in the community. Participants will be recruited via mail, email, and/or word of
mouth. Workshop participation will be tracked using sign-in sheets provided at the
beginning each workshop. Surveys will be administered at the end of the workshops to
gain feedback on workshop delivery and effectiveness. The anticipated short-term
outcomes of these workshops are 1) increased knowledge of childhood nutrition and its
impact on development and 2) increased knowledge of available food resources in the
community.
Community/Home Gardening Workshops
Workshops on community and home gardening will promote self-sustainable practices
and encourage the use of AAMI’s current community garden. These workshops will be
designed to reflect the fact that some families may not have the space or resources to
garden at home. They will also promote the expansion of AAMI community gardens to
different sites that are accessible to larger portions of the community. Along with
providing gardening lessons and promoting the use of community gardens, these
workshops will help to build a stronger support network in the AAMI community.
Participants will be recruited via mail, email, and/or word of mouth. Workshop
participation will be tracked using sign-in sheets provided at the beginning each
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workshop. Surveys will be administered at the end of the workshops to gain feedback on
workshop delivery and effectiveness.
Partnerships with Local Organizations and Grocery Stores
Partnerships with local organizations and grocery stores is the final strategy that this
project will utilize to promote a sustainable shift in the community’s access to resources.
Organizations and grocery stores that are proximal to the communities served by the
AAMI program will be identified as potential partners for this internship project. These
partnerships may serve as additional resources for food and other needs, opportunities for
employment, and sources of funding to support the food security of AAMI boys.
Internship Timeline:
A Gantt chart is a tool used to illustrate the activities and schedule of a particular project
(“What is a Gantt Chart? Gantt Chart Information, history and Software,” 2016). The
Gantt chart below (Table 3) provides a tentative timeline for when each internship
activity will be completed. This chart will be used to ensure that the internship project
progresses as it should throughout the semester. The schedule outlined in this chart may
change based on the needs of the project and the organization.
Table 3. Gantt Chart of Internship Activities
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Activity Fall
2016
January
2017
February
2017
March
2017
April
2017
May
2017
Literature review x x
Internship planning meetings x x
On-going internship meetings x x x x x
Informal focus groups x x
Workshops planning x x x
Pilot workshops x x
Identify potential community
partners
x x
Communications with
community partners
x x x x x
Meetings with community
partners
x x x x
Internal project evaluation x x
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References
About Us. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2016, from http://www.aamicis.org/wiley-site#!
__wiley-site/about-us
Ashiabi, G. S., & ONeal, K. K. (2008). A Framework for Understanding the Association
Between Food Insecurity and Childrens Developmental Outcomes. Child
Development Perspectives, 2(2), 71–77. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1750-
8606.2008.00049.x
Chilton, M. M., Rabinowich, J. R., & Woolf, N. H. (2014). Very low food security in the
USA is linked with exposure to violence. Public Health Nutrition, 17(1), 73–82.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980013000281
CIS of Greater Greensboro. (n.d.). Retrieved November 12, 2016, from
http://cisgg.org/siteco2.html
Coleman-Jensen, A., Gregory, C., & Rabbitt, M. (2016, September 7). USDA Economic
Research Service - Food Security in the U.S. Retrieved October 13, 2016, from
http://ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us.aspx
Cook, J., & Jeng, K. (2009). Child Food Insecurity: The Economic Impact on our Nation.
Feeding America. Retrieved from
https://www.nokidhungry.org/sites/default/files/child-economy-study.pdf
Fiese, B. H., Gundersen, C., Koester, B., & Washington, L. (2011). Household Food
Insecurity: Serious Concerns for Child Development. Social Policy Report.
Volume 25, Number 3. Society for Research in Child Development. Retrieved
from http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED521696
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Food BackPack Program. (2014). Retrieved November 12, 2016, from
http://backpackbeginnings.org/food-backpacks/
Food Research and Action Center. (2016). Food Hardship in America: Households with
Children Especially Hard Hit. Retrieved from http://frac.org/pdf/food-hardship-
report-households-with-children-sep-2016.pdf
Freeman, A. (2007). Fast Food: Oppression through Poor Nutrition. California Law
Review, 95(6). https://doi.org/doi:10.15779/Z386997
Gundersen, C., & Ziliak, J. P. (2014). Childhood food insecurity in the US: Trends,
causes, and policy options. The Future of Children, 24(2), 1–19.
Hadley, C., Tessema, F., & Muluneh, A. T. (2012). Household food insecurity and
caregiver distress: Equal threats to child nutritional status? American Journal of
Human Biology, 24(2), 149–157. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajhb.22200
Jyoti, D. F., Frongillo, E. A., & Jones, S. J. (2005). Food Insecurity Affects School
Children’s Academic Performance, Weight Gain, and Social Skills. The Journal
of Nutrition, 135(12), 2831–9.
Knowlton, L. W., & Phillips, C. C. (2009). The logic model guidebook: better strategies
for great results. Los Angeles: SAGE.
Map the Meal Gap. (2014). Retrieved October 13, 2016, from
http://map.feedingamerica.org/
Meisenheimer, M. (2016). Food Insecurity in Early Childhood. Center for the Study of
Social Policy.
No Kid Hungry. (2015). Hunger in Our Schools. Retrieved from
http://hungerinourschools.org/img/NKH-HungerInOurSchoolsReport-2015.pdf
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Oasis Grows in Greensboro Food Desert. (2014, December 22). Retrieved October 13,
2016, from https://bsc.poole.ncsu.edu/library/article/oasis-grows-in-greensboro-
food-desert?/news/oasis-grows-in-greensboro-food-desert
Story, M. (2009). The Third School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study: Findings and
Policy Implications for Improving the Health of US Children. Journal of the
American Dietetic Association, 109(2, Supplement), S7–S13.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2008.11.005
Waity, J. F. (2016). Spatial Inequality in Access to Food Assistance in Indiana.
Sociological Inquiry, 86(1), 103–126. https://doi.org/10.1111/soin.12098
What is a Gantt Chart? Gantt Chart Information, history and Software. (2016). Retrieved
November 20, 2016, from http://www.gantt.com/
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