Building A-TEAM
/By Vicky Ajene, Associate Director of Academic and Enrichment Programs
One of the most fulfilling parts of my job for the past three years has been working with our summer academic interns, fondly referred to as the A-TEAM. The A-TEAM members come to us for summer internships such as Princeton, Wellesley, Brown, UMass, and UNH with the same purpose of designing and facilitating academic curriculum for the youth of B-SAFE. Every year, it is amazing to see how these collegiate students from different states, backgrounds, majors, and skillsets come together and forge strong bonds with each other through this one shared experience.
However, when COVID-19 hit this spring, it threw all of our standard summer plans for a loop. One of these challenges was that the majority of our internships were now required to go remote and our summer program went hybrid--meaning that student’s days would involve both in-person programming and a virtual component. This would be the first cohort of interns that would really never meet face-to-face. This would be the first cohort where interns did the majority of their work in a virtual Zoom setting. While I trusted that these interns would take their job seriously and do great work, I figured it would be nearly impossible to have this cohort of A-TEAM members learn to work collaboratively and grow together as a team.
As a supervisor, I suffered huge waves of anxiety leading up to their start date. I doubted that I was prepared to lead them through this kind of summer. I feared that I wouldn’t be able to promise a worthwhile experience. I knew that this summer I wouldn’t have all the answers they needed--and deserved. However, ready or not, on June 1st, seven bright, eager interns showed up to my Zoom meeting and there was no turning back.
I won’t lie and say it wasn’t a rocky start…everything that was usually standard information was now irrelevant or different in some way. Every training needed amendments, every description contradicted itself. I was often met with confused looks or questions and found myself constantly backtracking over previous things I had said while on A-TEAM auto-pilot. Recognizing my power in the intern-supervisor relationship, I decided to just be transparent with them.
“This summer is going to be complicated, difficult, and new to everyone--including me. But I promise that I have your backs and we will come out of this stronger and more capable than ever.”
For the month of June, the A-TEAM met virtually twice a day and individually with me throughout the week. It became the meetings I’d look forward to most as we all got to know each other through casual conversations, shared struggles, and silly check-in questions-- like “Which Harry Potter house would you get sorted into?”. After a while, I could feel the discomfort melt, the candid moments slip out, and everyone fall in step with our daily routines.
Later on, after a long week of virtual training, the A-TEAM excitedly (and nervously) presented their curriculum to the rest of the staff...but were met with mostly lethargic silence. Even in a virtual check-in I could sense how low and defeated they all seemed afterward. We decided to turn our check-in into an affirmation session, where each A-TEAM member could get a chance to hear words of encouragement and appreciation from their peers. I watched each one’s face genuinely brighten and relax. There was even a comment of “I really liked meeting all the staff this week, but I’m glad to be back with just the A-TEAM”. At this point, I knew that this cohort was truly a team.
Now, as we navigate through all the challenges that come with this 2020 summer, I am able to watch this group grow together and depend on one another in ways that I wouldn’t have thought possible. I read their daily updates on how they brainstormed lesson ideas and solutions with ideas with other members. I check our group texts to find out that they’ve not only advocated for more check-in meetings but that they’ve already sent out the Zoom link! I note their enthusiastic suggestions to do more bonding and self-care with each other outside of work hours. The more I reflect and observe our interactions I’ve noticed these common threads embodied by each A-TEAM member: Respect, Trust, Affirmation, Determination of Purpose, Flexibility, Communication, and Collaboration. These qualities have been present in this team from the start and have grown stronger as we tackle challenges and avert miniature and major crises. These qualities make this team strong and unified regardless of virtual boundaries and social distancing procedures.
While I can’t say that I built this team--it built itself--I am extremely proud to be a part of it.
Vicky Ajene grew up in the arts, attending Boston Arts Academy for instrumental music and Lasell College to receive her B.A. in Fashion Design and Production. Over a span of 10 years Vicky had occupied many roles within St. Stephen's Youth including Counselor-in-Training, Teaching Specialist, Site Manager, Academic Administrator, before accepting the Manager of Academic and Enrichment Programs position. She believes that learning happens all the time and often through unexpected outlets. Her goals for program are to provide opportunities for youth to find their passions and to engage youth in learning through creativity and play outside of the classroom.