A recent HealthAffairs blog post explored how non profit hospitals are affected by their tax-exempt status under the Affordable Care Act. In the post, author Sara Rosenbaum cited The Hilltop Institute and referenced its Hospital Community Benefit Program’s brief titled “Hospital Community Benefits after the ACA: Addressing Social and Economic Factors that Shape Health.”

Click here to read “Tax-Exempt Status For Nonprofit Hospitals Under The ACA: Where Are The Final Treasury/IRS Rules?” in HealthAffairs.

Name: Valeriya Nakshun

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: The Rosen Group

Major(s)/Minor(s): Media and Communication Studies

Expected Graduation Year: June 2016

Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research, or service-learning opportunity, including your day-to-day tasks, responsibilities, and assignments.

I had my internship over the summer at the Rosen Group, which is a company that produces the "American Made Show," a wholesale art/trade show. I was hired at the beginning of the fall to work part-time as an Exhibits Coordinator. My day-to-day responsibilities include printing exhibitor applications, looking through their works of art whether it be ceramics, jewelry, fiber, glass, or 2-dimensional art. I put everything together, carefully reviewing the applications to make sure they really are American-made, and prep the applications for final review. I'm half of a two-person team in the Exhibitor Services department, which handles all exhibitor-related issues including payments, answering questions, assigning booths, and mailing out contracts among other things.

Describe the process of obtaining your internship, research, or co-op opportunity.

I actually found it on my own via the internships.com website. I received a positive response on my resume from the owner of the company so she sent me an email with her phone number to contact her. I did and we set up the interview and I was hired on the spot.

Which of the following resources did you use to find your current experience?

On my own online.

What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company?

I love the fact that I work with artists. It keeps me sane. I look at art every single day when looking through applications, and at the end of the day, I know that the company I work for helps artists sell their work and display it to a much larger audience. My minor is Art History and Museum Studies, and I plan to go to grad school later on for Curatorial or Museum Studies, so this experience will open up a lot of doors in the art world for me.

What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another opportunity?

Not only do I get to work with artists, but I work with artists all around the United States and Canada. It's great exposure. Another thing I gained is experience with different marketing and database software. We utilize a lot of different websites and software where I work. I work with software called InfusionSoft, a website called A2Z, and an application called FileMaker Pro. It's really great that I have experience working with all these technologies in one area, so it makes me a lot more employable in the future.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

I would say to look everywhere. Use UMBCWorks but also look online. Google art organizations and see which ones are looking for interns, volunteers, or employees. If you have a particular place where you want to intern or work, contact the business directly and ask if anything is available. Also, make sure you have at least the general knowledge to do well in the field.

Please provide a short quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / the internship placement process.

I like going to work and feeling like my work is valued, and that I'm part of a show that helps artists exhibit their work and make a living.

BBC Radio 4 recently aired a special one hour program about interviewing members of the public in the historic format of the vox pop. Jason Loviglio, associate professor and chair of media and communication studies, was interviewed for the program and provides historical context throughout the segment.

“The origins of vox pop in the United States are almost as old as the origins of broadcasting in the United States. The juxtaposition of the polished, educated voice of the professional radio announcer was then juxtaposed with the voice of the man on the street, sometimes quite literally,” Loviglio said. He pointed to Houston, Texas in 1932 as the origin of vox pop where broadcasters strung a microphone out of a window to interview passers by on the street.

Later in the program, Loviglio describes the differences between American radio and the BBC in the 1940s and 1950s: “The kinds of opinions that were the prerogative of professional journalists and were not the prerogative of anyone else. So the idea that there would be a meaningful contribution from the average person on the street really did not resonate in the same way for the BBC and for very logical business model reasons.”

To listen to the program in its entirety, click here.