Student Acheivements

Current Students

Currently, there are over 150 students pursuing a Human Services major or minor.

Michael Coyne

Michael, Human Services and International Affairs Dual 2011, is working at the Boston City Council for his co-op. Mike is assigned to a specific Boston City Councilor and assists the Councilor in a number of ways. Mike handles many of the administrative tasks and researches any areas of possible work interest of the Councilor for legislation, or an upcoming hearing. Mike has been able to attend various events with, or as a representative for the Councilor.

Julie Miller

Learning life lessons through volunteering By Jeanine Budd

Julie Miller is double majoring in American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting and human services, and minoring in African American studies. However, she said only 20 percent of her focus is on academics.

She said she devotes the other 80 percent to learning from the people she works with during the hours she spends volunteering at Students for Choice, Peace Games and at the Center of Community Service. "I've learned so much by volunteering," Miller said. "People really inspire me to keep me going, which is all the motivation I need to manage my time."

Through Peace Games, a national organization aimed at ending youth violence, Miller teaches a class to local elementary school students once a week. During this time, Miller and her colleagues use problem solving exercises, with team and confidence building activities as tools, to teach the children cooperation.

"The class is only once a week, but I've been able to make Peace Games the experience that I want it to be," she said. "I've taken on leadership roles because I love the organization and I love the people that I work with, and I really believe in the mission of the organization."

Miller's passion for volunteering began in high school, she said. "I just randomly went into this elderly home that had been built near my house and asked if I could do anything to volunteer," she said. "They didn't really know what to do with me, so I kind of just started hanging out with the residents at this place."

Eventually, Miller created a volunteer program in her Maryland community for people her age that would allow them to volunteer if they needed hours for service, or if they simply wanted to get involved. "I feel like a lot of people our age feel like they won't be good at anything, like they won't be able to serve anyone if they just show up," she said. "But really ... a lot of elderly people just want someone they can talk to."

Miller's next leadership position came when she moved to Connecticut. Miller, whose older sister is deaf, began learning ASL when she was 11 years old. Miller decided to create a few sign language clubs in her community, one of which was called Hand in Hand. "It was a traveling theatre group for the deaf and hard of hearing," she said. "We toured it around to ... kids in Connecticut, and we really tried to create a feeling of inclusion and accessibility for everyone."

Miller said she has also learned the importance of communication while working at a few camps for kids with autism, retardation and cerebral palsy. "I worked with a 9-year-old boy at a camp who had some kind of developmental delay. He wasn't autistic, but he was nonverbal," she said. "I feel like he and I made this incredible bond that wasn't based on words, but was based on play."

In the future, Miller said she hopes to work with families in crisis. "More than anything else, I know that people lift each other up," she said. "So if one person does not have stable support, they might be more likely to fall apart."

Taken from: NU-News; (NU-News) Issue date: 6/4/08 Section: Campus Life

Scarlett Trillia

The Effect of Ecotourism in Southern Mexico

In the fall of 2006, when I decided to switch into the Human Services department, my academic life suddenly kicked into high gear. Within days of joining the major, I applied to the Human Service Summer I Dialogue program to Mexico. From there, my curiosity and enthusiasm just grew and grew. I soon discovered that I was eligible to apply for a research grant from the Provost and hoping to expand the experience of the Dialogue program, I began to investigate potential research topics in Southern Mexico.

Drawing from my background of interest in Ecology and outdoor adventure, I proposed to continue to travel in Mexico in order to experience first hand the development and impact of Ecotourism. I was very shocked by the results of this research project. Going into it I was expecting to be greeted by the kinds of programs and tours I had researched on the Internet. However, there is a huge discrepancy between what an American tourist can do through an American agency and what an average Mexican tour guide can offer. The meaning of the phrase "Ecotour" seems to be completely lost in translation. Expecting to be guided through lush wilderness and educated in the local ecology, we found instead that we were met by desperately under-funded guides hoping to make a little money however they could. One of our "ecotours" guided us literally past not only a quarry but also a garbage dump!

At least hoping to find the high costs of these tours being redistributed back into local communities, I was upset to see that all the best tours were run completely independently of the local people. Even worse, instead of finding a keen interest in ecology, my inquiries about environmental tourism were met with anything from confusion to utter disgust. How could I have expected elevated ecoliteracy in a place where most people are not even exposed to basic literacy education? We realized we needed to take a huge step back.

Despite the fact that the project took a sharp turn in a direction I hadn't expected, I was very pleased with the way it turned out. I was exposed to so much more than I had ever hoped to be and the places we visited really helped to identify which things I will be interested in studying in the future. I hope to return to Latin America, this time focusing on more critical issues, such as literacy, women's rights, cooperative education, and contemporary social movements. However, by maintaining a dedication to eco-literacy and the environment, I also hope to find, or develop, a middle ground that can address environmental issues while simultaneously working to improve quality of life.

We had the opportunity to visit so many amazing organizations, both with the Dialogues program and during my independent study. There is a successful history of cooperative efforts in every realm, including the environment. What I would like to do is find a way to draw the tourist's attention to these types of organizations. I think everyone is beginning to realize that coming together is the most powerful way to tackle big issues. Right now the environment might not be a top priority but it definitely plays a role. I can't wait to continue to learn and grow through continued research and travel.

Taken from: Honors PERSPECTIVE; Volume 3 - Fall 2007

Scarlett Trillia

Scarlett, HS Major 2010, is also the Development Intern for Fall 2007. She is a third year Human Services student at Northeastern University and selected HSTF for her first full time Co-Op Internship. Scarlett has always had a strong interest in social services, youth programs, and eco-literacy. Prior to joining the Development team at HSTF she cut her teeth working on grants for Boston based La Alianza Hispana. Scarlett recently spent six weeks studying and doing social and environmental research in Southern Mexico. Next year she plans to continue her research, studies, and social service work in Argentina, her family�s country of origin. She is a strong supporter of community gardening and was a participant in the original Edible Schoolyard program. She hopes to make this the focus of her future work in urban youth development.

Scarlett was also a recipient of funds from the Provost Undergraduate Research award. She is continuing her stay in Mexico from the International Human Services DOC Program and will do her research will be on eco-tourism in developing Mexico looks interesting and its description provides good support for the budget.

Corrie Hunkler

Corrie,Human Services Major 2010, and others wanted to tackle with inefficiency of NGOs to find a way to connect the many NGOs and people involved with them in Boston and create a venue accessible to all.

Starting in January, their team has been meeting with different community leaders, non profits and networking organizations to help us get a better idea of the NGO sector of Boston. In May they received a grant from the Center of Community Service at Northeastern that is helping us build and fund our website Network a Nonprofit: Scholarship Opportunities

Network a Nonprofit is currently being established, and when finished (September), they hope it will provide another way for the students, volunteers, communities and non profits or Boston to connect, establish relationships, and start to discuss and work together on issues. Network a Nonprofit will have a discussion board, calendar of events, contact information, and more. It will be accessible to anyone involved in the non profit sector.

Recent Graduates NU Acheivements

Barbara Civill

Barbara, Human Services Major 2008, is now the Program Coordinator for Ritmo en Accion. She is a senior at Northeastern University studying Human Services and International Affairs. She has also spent time studying in South Africa and Mexico. She started with the Hyde Square Task Force in July 2006 and began working with Ritmo en Accion in January 2007. As the Coordinator for Ritmo en Accion, she was instrumental in planning the first annual Ritmo en Accion Cultural Showcase in May 2007.

Co-op Award Recipient 2007

Co-op Awards Committee is pleased to announce that they have and selected the following students for the three named awards:

Alcott- Matt Bouchard, Physics major

Pratt- Daniel Yokell, Pharmacy

McMahon - Maria Graceffa, Human Services/Psychology

The Thomas E. McMahon Award was established in 1991 in Memory of Dean McMahon, who retired from the Department of Cooperative Education in 1972, after 27 years of distinguished service to the University. This award recognizes one student for outstanding devotion and commitment to serving others while on co-op.

CRITERIA: Dean McMahon will long be remembered as a warm and caring individual who was always ready to lend a helping hand or attentive ear to students and staff alike who sought out his counsel and support. Accordingly, the award which bears his name is presented annually to a senior in the human service professions who in the course of his/her Cooperative Education work has demonstrated exceptional integrity and character combined with a high degree of devotion and commitment to serving the needs of fellow human beings.

Ceremony for the award winners was held on November 8th from 3:30-5:30.

Maria Graceffa and Amanda Parker

Maria Graceffa, Human Services/ Psychology Double Major 2008, and Amanda Parker, Human Services Major 2008, presented with Dean James Stellar, College of Arts and Sciences and Professor Richard Porter at the World Association of Cooperative Education (WACE) Conference in Charleston, SC.

This panel will first share its experiment in using concurrent and collective reflection with students while on-co-op. Then, it will engage audience participants in a conversation to elicit their thinking about and experience with different models of reflection on co-op by focusing on the following questions:

A) What models of reflection are currently, or could be, used in WIL programs?

B) What benefits to students might be expected from different models of reflection?

C) How would one assess whether these benefits are achieved by the students?

D) What are the associated costs and do the benefits outweigh these costs?

In sharing their model of concurrent reflection, the panelists will report on their work-in-progress in evaluating their experiment using a Practice-Based Learning Outcomes Questionnaire developed by Joe Raelin. The student panelists will bring to the conversation their experience on co-op both with and without concurrent reflection and discuss their role in the ongoing research effort to assess benefits for students. The panel will also share its experience using different types of facilitators for the learning teams, the best ways to start up the learning teams, and how to keep students engaged throughout the process. Finally, the panelists will share especially administrative considerations that might feature in deciding whether the benefits outweigh the costs, will disclose the rationale for initiating this model of concurrent reflection, and will highlight the different roles students take on in implementing this model.

Amanda Parker

Amanda Parker, Human Services Major 2008, was accepted and currently attending the Summer I 2008 Dialogue of Civilization to Egypt. She will be spending 7 weeks in Egypt and the UAE.

Peter Sauro

Peter, Human Services Major 2009, spear headed the Husky Volunteer Team. The mission is: The Husky Volunteer Team, sponsored by the Center of Community Service, sends out teams of 5-10 student volunteers to local community organizations to provide meaningful and ongoing service. HVT addresses a variety of social issues within the communities of Roxbury, South End, Fenway, and Mission Hill. It also provides a great opportunity to become civically engaged with the neighborhoods surrounding Northeastern University and to gain valuable experience in a leadership role.

Jesenia Tejada

Jesenia, Human Services 2008, is working at La Vida Inc. A non-profit organization in Lynn. Amongst their many programs, she is teaching illiterate adults how to read and write, as well as helping to run a pilot program called La Vida Scholars. The Scholars program�s emphasis is on getting Lynn high school sophomore students prepared for the college admission process. We start them off early and keep them throughout their remaining 3 years of high school. We help them pass their MCAS, get them ready for the Pre-SAT�s, as well as learning strategies for when the actual SAT�s roll around. We also plan college campus visits and help them find scholarships. It's wonderful and really loves it there!