JUNIOR MINOUGOU
COM 5010
PROFESSOR BISHOP
FINAL REPORT
Response to Questions 1, 2 & 3
Every job opportunity and every internship I have had, has made me the man and the leader I am today. Although I believe that I have not reached my full potential yet, nothing in my eyes compares to the learning experience I gained from such an engaging internship at WHEDco. The organization known as the Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation was created with the sole purpose of giving Bronx residents a chance at economically thriving in a neighborhood that was once omitted. WHEDco through its community revitalization plan took strong actions to help Bronx residents and businesses grow and improve their own neighborhood through affordable housing and educational empowerment for kids at an early age while giving small business owners a chance to thrive financially and grow.
I was fortunate enough to work alongside the Community Development department but my thirst for knowledge pushed me to work with the Marketing and Communication department as well. First, as an intern I was thankful to have been apart of the launch of the Boogie Down Booth.. The launching day had in attendance local news stations along with community leaders and members of the NYC Park.
The Booth is the creation of Chat Travieso a very talented young artist whose vision is to build a more friendly environment for Bronx residents. The Booth includes the technology that enables it to play live music 24/7 and stands in front of Boricua College on Melrose near 161st street. This comes as an initiative from WHEDco (Women's Housing and Economic Development Corporation) in collaboration with the BMHC (Bronx Music Heritage Center) as a way to build a better Bronx. The Booth is accessible to all and provides free entertainment to any passersby and visitors.
I had the privilege of promoting such an innovation by engaging business owners in the areas along with community members prior to the launch. I attended numerous community board meetings and was fortunate enough to learn how street naming decisions were made. My job was to report all my findings to my supervisor in a very precise email with pictures and video recordings included. The knowledge and skills I acquired from my COM 3102 class with Professor Cayo were very useful in presenting my organization to the public when attending such meetings. I was able to make eye contact with everyone in the room while speaking confidently about the reason of my presence.
I also recently organized, along with the Senior Program Manager of Business Revitalization Luz Lopez, the annual Bronx Music@Melrose Sun Festival. The event is part of the NYC DOT (Department Of Transportation) annual weekend walk and occurred two Fridays, June 10th and June 17th 2016, on 161st Street between Elton and Melrose. The event was free and opened to the public.
As an intern my job included volunteer recruitment via phone or email, contacting private contractors such as Mr. John and Clowns4kids to provide portable bathrooms and basketball hoops to the public. While finding volunteers and negotiating with contractors is time-consuming, my greatest challenge was walking into the neighborhood police precinct to get permission for the street to be blocked. As I have never walked into a police precinct before, I was a bit unsure and nervous of whom I should speak to. Officer Nelson of the NYPD's 42nd precinct noticed how uncomfortable I was and took me into his office to sort out the street permits. He made me feel relaxed and he and I bonded as a result.
I had the opportunity to be in the far front of promoting the event. After a few meetings with the communication and marketing departments we came up with a well-designed flyer that I then used to engage the neighborhood residents and organizations in the area. Morris Heights Health Center, Bronx Lebanon Hospital and Boricua College were a few organizations that choose to participate in the festival and educate people about their products and services.
The day of the event I faced some adversity. I was glad I attended a crisis management class taught by Professor Lopez. First tents needed sandbags and I stepped up into a construction site nearby to fill up bags with gravel using my bare hands as a tool. Next, I tried to assemble the basketball hoops in order to allow CBall to get the basketball game started. Finally, I had to manage the stage and have participating artists perform in an orderly manner. The event was a success and in both days combined we had over a thousand attendees. This was my first time organizing such a major event and I was very happy to see myself on the News 12BX channel afternoon edition.
In conclusion, I was lucky to have built a strong relationship with everyone working across the organization. I was surprised to see all the executives present on my last day. They all clapped hands once I walked through the doors as a way of thanking me for bringing my joyful and uplifting personality to the office. They all gave me a new career perspective in life and I am grateful for the opportunity that was given to me. As I am entering my last semester of college there is no doubt in my mind that I would love to pursue a community development career or one that involves corporate philanthropy. I believe that I could work independently and under supervision while giving my best on every single task and challenge that may arise. I believe that my interpersonal skills will help me grow in whatever path I may chose.
APPENDIX:
Tasks/Projects:
●Managed interested contacts seeking commercial space through REThink
●Conducted neighborhood-wide business and consumer surveys
●Drafted and created promotional materials for community programming
●Managed email blasts, and marketing materials to promote local initiatives within the community
●Promoted the launch of the new Boogie Down Booth location in cooperation with NYC Parks
●Organized, managed, and obtained street permitting for the 2nd Annual Bronx Street Festival in cooperation with NYC DOT for over 1000 attendees