Department of Sociology and Criminology Intern Profiles

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Emma Frank, Warren County Day Treatment, Spring 2020

Emma Frank first decided to attend Western Kentucky University after her campus tour, which happened to take place during the spring. The cherry blossoms were in bloom as Emma was drawn in by the student community and the beautiful campus. After Emma applied she was accepted and, “To this day, I’m still so happy I attended WKU.” Emma was initially worried about being two hours away from her home town of Jasper, Indiana, but she says being so far from home helped her become independent and her own person at WKU. Emma graduated WKU in May 2020 with a bachelor's degree in sociology and a music minor.

When Emma started to look for internship opportunities in Spring 2020, she turned to Dr. Holli Drummond for help. Based off of her general application and preferences, Dr. Drummond recommended she work at Warren County Day Treatment, a program in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The program is meant for at-risk kids, some of whom have court orders to be there, where they spent time preparing strategies and learning behaviors that will help them do better in school. She explains, “The day treatment program is for students who need a more stable environment.” The program works with middle and high school students. Over the course of this
internship Emma shadowed the supervisors of the program, and followed them in their daily activities. She is gained experience in a variety of settings such as court, family court, social services, and foster care. She had the chance to connect with students and help them prepare for the future. She says the best thing about her internship was seeing how the program benefits the students in school and how it helps them as a person. “I want to see them succeed.”

Emma plans to work in the school system in her future career. Throughout this internship she gained many skills that will help her in her future endeavors. Emma developed her communication skills and has a better understanding of the type of professionalism schools will be looking for. She also has an understanding of how certain types of family dynamics work. Another skill she developed was a keener eye in the classroom.  Based on her experience, Emma feels better equipped to address the needs of students who may need more attention and encouragement.

Emma’s advice to incoming and current students is to not lose their motivation. “And do what you love. If I do what I love and it makes me happy, that will make my job a lot easier.”

Outside of her internship Emma enjoys yoga and cooking.