The DAI Internship Experience

This summer, DAI had the opportunity to work with two student interns who collaborated with us in unique and important ways. Each student was a valuable contributor to the diverse activities that are essential to DAI’s mission and vision. Their educational background combined with their personal connections to adoption enhanced their contributions to our work.

We asked our students to weigh in on their experiences at the conclusion of their internship. We are very grateful for their work and have every hope that they will continue to collaborate with DAI in different ways after their studies are completed. As DAI embraces our bold new vision, building authentic relationships with tomorrow’s leaders in adoption will be a crucial variable to our success.

Intern Mae Mae Moloney

MAEMAE MOLONEY

University Attending: University of Southern California

Program of Study: Human Biology

Plans After Graduation: Either research for drug companies or academic research with a university.

Interest Areas in the Field of Adoption and Foster Care Adoption: Media portrayal of families, adoption, and foster care.

How did You Contribute to DAI this Summer: I did a lot of organizational work with information about adoption in the media.  In nonfiction, I found reporters and news outlets, and on the other side I profiled fictional narratives (movies and TV).  I also found out about related organizations and charities.

How did Your Internship at DAI Contribute to your Education/Field of Study: My school has an emphasis on the humanities in response to the growing emphasis on STEM in universities and in the workforce.  I’ve had to take them along with the hard sciences for my major, so I frequently think of the biological basis for the human experience.  I think family is good case study: the nuclear family is one of the most important ideas in our Western society (now with elections coming I’m sure we’ll all hear a lot about “family values”) but it is not the only way.  Hunter-gatherers have different strategies for keeping the population going, and are probably more “true” to our origin as a species.  So the prototypical “family” of mother, father, and their biological children in the Western world is clearly not the default model people think it is.  Working at DAI taught me how one group who deviates from the supposed norm – adopted, and often LGBT families, from the nuclear family – internalizes and communicates its experience as a “variation” with both each other and society at large.

Personal Connection to Adoption: My parents adopted me from a Chinese orphanage, and also have my older and younger brothers who were in open adoptions.  We’re a multiracial family, since my parents are white, my older brother is Black, and my younger brother is mixed but mostly Asian.

Plans to Contribute to the Field of Adoption/Foster Care Adoption in the Future: As a scientist who will have to keep up with the community and its research, I will hear a lot about climate change and sustainability since they are such pressing issues.  My generation and its children will likely inherit much of the damage and have to find its solutions, so one of the best things I can do is promote responsible population growth in my peers and encourage them to consider adoption, as an adoptee, when they plan to have families.  I also think this makes sense from a humanitarian perspective-taking care of the ones already in existence and ensuring the best quality of life possible-and beneficial for the sake of critical thinking to reconsider the ages-old traditional family model that we’re told is normal and constantly flooded with in our media.

Intern AnaElisa Franco

University Attending:  Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University

Program of Study: Master of Public Policy with a concentration in Child, Youth and Family Policy

Plans After Graduation:  Work to improve adoption or child welfare policy. Ideally, working for a non-profit organization that specializes in this type of policy.

Interest Areas in the Field of Adoption and Foster Care Adoption:  While I am interested in many areas of adoption and foster care policy, I am especially passionate about those related to pre- and post-adoption services as well as those that advance first/birth parent rights and extended family rights.

How did You Contribute to DAI this Summer: I had the opportunity to do a variety of tasks to support DAI in their work:

• Researched federal and state bills related to adoption
• Researched LGBT adoption, the impact of marriage equality, and resources available to the community
• Researched state legislative and budget calendars
• Compiled a list of conferences related to Adoption, Foster Care, ART, Family, and Philanthropy
• Contributed to Policy & Advocacy section of DAI’s Summer Newsletter
• Created factsheets relating to DAI’s 4 pillars
• Reported back on what I learned at NACAC’s conference in Long Beach and where DAI’s work could complement and be strengthened by that of other agencies

How did Your Internship at DAI Contribute to your Education/Field of Study:  I gained experience in researching policies and developing tools to advance policy. This gave me a behind the scenes look at some of the leg-work necessary for this type of work.

Personal Connection to Adoption: I was adopted through private, domestic, infant adoption and am sister to an adopted person.

Plans to Contribute to the Field of Adoption/Foster Care Adoption in the Future: I would like to devote my career to policy advocacy; advancing and supporting changes in policy to strengthen families.

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