Penn State Week 1

Hello everyone! My name is Ali and I am an intern at Penn State University. I recently graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Dietetics. This is my first time in Pennsylvania and I am excited to explore the many outdoor activities it has to offer. When I first arrived, I was warmly welcomed by a wonderful bag of snacks and a fully stocked fridge by the intern coordinators, Marianne and Maria aka M&M.

The first couple days included orientation and an overview of what our internship will comprise of. To familiarize ourselves with the campus, Marianne created a Penn State-themed scavenger hunt for us to complete as a group. This was a lot of fun and a great way to get to know the other interns and attempt to learn our way around the gigantic campus. I am definitely still working on that last part. One of the locations on the scavenger hunt was a mural of influential people from Pennsylvania. We were lucky enough to be there as the artist was painting and he offered to give us a tour of the wall. It was amazing to see all of the symbolism behind each piece of the artwork and to learn about each person memorialized in the painting.

Our first real day of work started bright and early at 5:00 am working in the dining halls. Penn State is hosting a volleyball tournament over Memorial Day weekend for over 300 teams and we have been helping prep food and serve breakfast and lunch for the teams and their families. So far everyone has been very friendly and eager to help us get the most out of our internship. I look forward to what’s in store for us next week!