My name is Madelyn Chan and I am a rising senior double majoring in Honours political science and psychology. I have a distinct interest in international development, supranational organizations, and humanitarian aid work. UNICEF USA’s mission to support UNICEF’s work in empowering and protecting the world’s children through fundraising, advocacy and education motivated me to seek employment as a summer intern. My experience at UNICEF USA far surpassed all expectations.
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As I am entering my final year of university, my objectives this summer were clear. I wanted to clarify the pros and cons of entering the workforce immediately after school, as opposed to continuing straight to graduate school. Moreover, considering my academic profile and related interests, I wanted to better understand the nonprofit space: what it means to work at a nonprofit, how the culture differs from other professional organizations, and most importantly what makes a nonprofit successful. Additionally, my dream has always been to work in the world of international politics, namely through the UN, so it was important for me to create a strong network of inspirational contacts. Finally, through my internship with UNICEF USA this summer, I set out to do my part. The work that UNICEF USA does is incredibly close to my heart, and critical to ensuring that each and every child has a fair chance for a good life, so I was determined to support the organizations work to the very best of my ability.
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During my time at UNICEF USA, one of the first things I noticed was how often the organization is misunderstood. Consequently, it was made very clear during my internship orientation that UNICEF USA is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit, not an arm of the UN, and certainly not a charity. UNICEF, The United Nations Children’s Fund, was founded by the United Nations in December 1946 in order to provide the children and mothers of countries devastated by World War II with emergency aid. UNICEF USA, in contrast was founded in 1947 as one of 36 national committees that support UNICEF through fundraising, advocacy, and education. In fiscal 2018, UNICEF USA’s total revenue exceeded $597 million with 77 cents on the dollar going directly to UNICEF. During my time at UNICEF USA I was charmed by how young, dynamic, and kind the New York office was. Everyone I met was incredibly well educated, helpful, and hard-working. I think the success of UNICEF USA stems from how well the resourceful and energized staff create opportunities for other employees to thrive, for donors to make a real and impactful difference, and beneficiaries of UNICEF aid to lead a healthier and happier life. Another critical aspect of UNICEF USA’s distinct success as a nonprofit is the skill and ease with which the organization manages a massive amount of data. Through both human and technological excellence, UNICEF USA can effectively steward an immense amount of donor data to solicit revenue.
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My responsibilities as an intern were twofold. Since the two departments were combined to the same team, I worked for both donor communications and prospect development. On the donor communication side I worked directly for the supervisor who hired me. Together we worked on sourcing, writing and formatting the monthly humanitarian newsletter for major donors. Additionally, I worked on internal research when necessary for the chief of communications. For example, I sourced high publicized up and coming conferences for him to speak at in order to further proliferate UNICEF USA’s brand past the nonprofit circle. I also wrote email templates for such events as UN observed holidays. Moreover, on the prospect development side, my work was less abstract and more technical. I worked for one of my supervisors in office, but mainly for my supervisor based in Houston. Therefore I received all feedback and instruction over phone and email. My main project was research centered. I would use online databases such as Foundation Directory and ProPublica to research high net worth private foundations in different regions of the United States, assess their philanthropic history and recent revenue, mainly through recent grants and 909 forms, to determine if they were an ideal prospect for UNICEF USA to solicit. If the foundation was a fit, I would then catalogue their information and give a brief grant history in a spreadsheet organized by region, then finish by inputting or managing their data within UNICEF’s internal CRM, BBCRM. Additionally, I would often work in BBCRM with data housekeeping.
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I owe the highlights of my internship experience to my supervisors and colleagues. I met countless inspirational individuals, but one woman, Anucha Browne, was particularly impactful. Ms. Browne organized a lunch with herself and all of the interns to give us an opportunity to meet with a senior staff member, share her story and ask questions. As a woman of color and winner of a landmark workplace sexual harassment lawsuit, Ms. Browne’s professional journey and perspective was poignant and gripping. After the lunch I kept in contact with Ms. Browne and I am confident I have found a very special, capable, and motivational professional mentor in her. The guidance and kindness I received from my direct supervisors was also quite meaningful to me. With the direction and experience I gained from my time at UNICEF USA I have become a more thoughtful, skilled and impassioned professional.
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My time at UNICEF USA has convinced me that I can succeed in the nonprofit space. It is incredibly fulfilling to see my work make a direct impact on a mission that inspires me. I plan on applying for a full time position at UNICEF USA following my graduation this spring to gain more valuable skills and experience before moving on to graduate school. Of course this would not be possible without the incredibly generous donation of Mr. Richard B. Levy. Mr. Levy’s kindness allowed me to follow my passions and move to New York this summer to work for UNICEF USA. I cannot describe the breadth of the professional and personal growth I experienced this first summer away from home. Last summer I struggled to work two jobs to be able to work an unpaid internship and return to school financially secure, but this summer I was able to simply focus on my internship with UNICEF USA. I am confident this freedom allowed me to do better work and create greater opportunities for success.
