Governor's Summer Intern - FSSA Healthy Opportunities
Indianapolis, IN, US, 46204
Work for Indiana
Begin a fulfilling career with the State of Indiana by joining one of the largest employers in the state, offering a diverse range of opportunities across 60+ agencies. At the state, you'll find competitive compensation, a robust benefits package and a commitment to work-life balance. Most importantly, you'll have the chance to make a real and measurable impact on the lives of Hoosiers across Indiana.
At the State of Indiana, we don’t just talk about diversity and inclusion—we make it our goal to create a welcoming, accessible, and equitable workplace with a workforce that is representative of Indiana's population. As a proud equal opportunity employer, reasonable accommodations may be available to enable individuals with disabilities to complete the application and interview process as well as perform the essential functions of a role.
Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA), Office of Healthy Opportunities:
FSSA was established by the Indiana General Assembly in 1991 to consolidate and better integrate the delivery of human services by state government. FSSA is a health care and social services funding agency. The eight care divisions in FSSA administer services to more than 1.5 million Hoosiers. FSSA’s mission is to compassionately serve our diverse community of Hoosiers by dismantling long-standing, persistent inequity through deliberate human services system improvement. FSSA's vision is that all Hoosiers live in fully engaged communities and reach their greatest emotional, mental and physical well-being.
The Office of Healthy Opportunities was formed in 2018 to work with communities served by Indiana FSSA to integrate social drivers of health—including racial and social equity—into agency programs and services. The mission of OHO is to identify and alleviate social risk factors to improve Hoosiers’ health and wellbeing. OHO’s work centers on: accessibility, community engagement, program and policy design, workforce development, and accountability and evidence.
About the Governor's Summer Internship:
The summer internship program provides participants the opportunity to work with state agency officials, as well as participate in co-curricular components to enrich their experiences. Interns spend at least 50 percent of their time on predetermined projects that enhance college-level skills and abilities. The co-curricular components of the program ensure competitive, reputable, and inclusive experiential learning. Interns participate in cohort activities on a weekly basis designed to enable:
- Professional growth and preparedness for the workforce upon graduation
- Exposure to many facets of state government
- Networking and camaraderie development among the cohort
The Office of Healthy Opportunities Intern will support the work of the OHO in identifying and addressing risk factors related to equitable health outcomes through the work of our staff and multiple workgroups. The Intern will support the office's focus areas of accessibility, accountability and evidence, community engagement, policy and program design, and workforce development. The Intern will be based at the agency's central office in downtown Indianapolis, working 37.5 hours a week with the opportunity to work up to 15 hours per week remotely. Opportunities include:
- Learn OHO’s mission, purpose, goals, and objectives and FSSA’s care divisions, business units, agency priorities, and engagement with state and federal agencies.
- Shadow OHO team to observe day-to-day operations and learn OHO initiatives
- Contribute meaningfully to ongoing accessibility, community engagement, workforce development, and policy and program design projects as requested. Tasks may include research, resource development, document review, and data collection and analysis.
- Will assist in creating, editing, and/or presenting tools such as feedback reports, training, and presentations to continue the advancement of OHO’s mission.
- Support and participate in public-facing community events in representation of FSSA.
- Identify, research, summarize, and share best practices specific to social, legal, and structural determinants of health. This research may be from professional associations, advocacy groups, academic journals, case reviews, and other sources.
- Attend meetings with internal and external stakeholders, with the opportunity to develop agendas and facilitate.
- Engage in webinars and learning opportunities that fit within interest area(s) and report key takeaways and best practices.
The ideal candidate will have a strong interest in exploring health equity-related topics. Previous experience working with FSSA's service populations is helpful and comfort with virtual meeting platforms (i.e. Microsoft Teams and Zoom) is desired.
Salary Statement:
The hourly wage for this position traditionally starts at $16.24 per hour for current undergraduate students and $17.24 per hour for those with an earned bachelor’s degree.
A Day in the Life:
The essential functions of this role are:
- Identify and execute one major project related to agency needs and academic area of study
- Create, develop, and sustain the programmatic efforts for the assigned discipline
- Analyze data and feedback to provide recommendations
- Partner with other relevant stakeholders to promote and enhance the quality of projects
- Collaborate with State of Indiana agencies to ensure effective implementation of internal and external initiatives
The job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Other duties, responsibilities, and activities may change or be assigned at any time.
What You'll Need for Success:
- Must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate with an accredited post-secondary institution and have completed at least one (1) year of undergraduate education.
- Academic work in related field
- Excellent oral and written communication skills
- Ability to analyze data sets related to discipline
- Ability to build relationships, establish credibility, and influence leaders at all levels
- Ability to conduct well-informed research
- Ability to solve complex, critical problems
- Ability to review and make recommendations on proposed changes to relevant policies and procedures
- Ability to maintain confidentiality
Benefits of Employment with the State of Indiana:
This seasonal position does not offer benefits and is limited to 180 working days in an eleven (11) month continuous period
Equal Employment Opportunity:
The State of Indiana is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to recruiting, selecting, developing, and promoting employees based on individual ability and job performance. Our policy is to provide equal employment opportunity to all people in all aspects of employer-employee relations without discrimination because of race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental disability, or veteran status. We will comply with the spirit as well as the letter of all applicable state and federal laws.
If you are a qualified individual with a disability and require reasonable accommodations to complete this application, you can request assistance by contacting the Indiana State Personnel Department at jobs@spd.IN.gov.
The State of Indiana has established a culture that welcomes equity, inclusion, and opportunity for all employees and applicants. We encourage you to apply if you feel you have the transferrable skills to be successful in this position and we look forward to reviewing your application.
Nearest Major Market: Indianapolis
