When University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point student Kayla Antos began her summer internship at the Red Cliff Boys & Girls Club of Gitchigami, she expected to work with youth and facilitate programs.
Instead, about two months into her placement, she was unexpectedly moved into a full-time position that challenged her to put her classroom learning into practice.
Antos, a family and consumer sciences – child life and family studies major from Bayfield, Wis., initially facilitated SMART Girls and Girls with Goals, programs focused on youth development and increasing female involvement at the club.
Then staff turnover left the club severely understaffed, and she was emergency hired for the role of youth activities coordinator.
The transition meant quickly developing skills in leadership, communication, organization and problem-solving. Antos continued facilitating programs while taking on responsibility for events, monthly calendars and field trips.
The new responsibilities pushed Antos outside of her comfort zone. “The hardest part for me is probably the communication,” said Antos. “I was not super aware of who’s placed where in the community or who to reach out to, especially within the tribe.”
She also began learning about the financial side of nonprofit programming, including grants, spending and purchase orders.
For Antos, the internship became an opportunity to learn skills that are difficult to replicate in a classroom. One example was with Camp Chequamegon, a four-week summer camp partnership between the club and the Bayfield School District.
Due to Bayfield School District undergoing construction, the school could not host children during the summer. Instead, the club hosted the camp, with Antos helping coordinate the club’s side of the partnership.
“We had around 100 kids over the four weeks in our not very big Boys & Girls Club,” said Antos.
Coordinating the camp required Antos to communicate with school staff, manage schedules and work through logistics with a large group of people. Those experiences helped her become more comfortable making decisions without having every answer ahead of time.
When she first stepped into the coordinator position, she struggled with imposter syndrome as she is still completing her degree and suddenly found herself responsible for a position that had not existed at the club for two years.
A trip to Madeline Island provided a lesson in collaboration and confidence. Antos and other staff members had to coordinate ferry logistics while working with the school and tribal partners, something which none of them had any experience.
“The most comforting thing that helped my imposter syndrome is knowing everyone was learning in that moment and I wasn’t alone in my experience. Everyone is doing life for the first time. No one’s an expert in everything,” said Antos.
That realization helped Antos rethink what it means to be qualified. Mentors also helped her recognize that she was capable of handling the responsibility. School staff members who knew Antos from her previous work at an early childhood center helped as she adjusted to her new role.
“Being able to have them encourage me and know they are listening was really important for me,” said Antos.
While she did have some room for learning when it came to the planning and organizing aspects of the position, connecting with the children there is something at which Antos excels.
“Everything that I’ve been tasked with and had to do has felt almost like second nature to me,” said Antos.
That included skills related to her academic field, such as recognizing when a child is struggling and determining how to respond or connect a family with appropriate services.
The internship also helped Antos develop confidence in areas outside of youth programming. She said she had always been uncomfortable making phone calls, but the responsibilities of her position forced her to practice and become comfortable calling local businesses and community partners to complete her work.
“Knowing I have to do it helped me get over it,” said Antos.
Beyond professional skills, the internship gave Antos opportunities to learn more about the community and Ojibwe culture. More importantly, the experience strengthened her confidence in the career she wants to pursue.
“These relationships I’ve built with the kids are my number one reward and the thing that impacts my heart the most,” said Antos.
Antos will continue working full-time at the club while attending school full-time. During the semester, she will also spend more time in the Bayfield School District through the Better Futures Initiative.
The internship solidified the path Antos wants to pursue after graduation in December of this year. She hopes to combine child life with family education, prevention, advocacy and intervention services and eventually establish a community-based center serving children and families in Bayfield and surrounding tribal communities.
“My goal is to ensure that every child and family, regardless of where they live or what they can afford, has access to the education, support and resources they need to thrive,” said Antos.