2014 Fall Presenters Stats

It's been a little over a year since my group of presenters started our internship. Since I have had a ton of time on my hands I've decided to dig a bit to see where we are all now.

-There were 29 of us in the Fall 2014 Conservation Education Presenter internship Group.

-There are currently 15 of us still employed by the company (not including the 3 that are still seasonal presenters).

-Of the 15 of us left, 10 have positions still within Animal Programs. (This is a little lie since in reality one person works with Natural Encounters, Inc which is a contractor, so she technically isn't really a cast member and isn't in Animal Programs, but it's close enough...)
-The 10 who are in Animal Programs currently hold positions as Summer Conservation Camp Instructors, Education Programs Instructors, Wild Africa Trek Guide, Pangani Trail Guide, Animal Keeper, and Wilderness Explorer Coordinator Internship (called Conservation Education Operations).
-Most of the people in Animal Programs are part time. The Conservation Day Camp Instructors are on a Full Time TA for the summer but go back to part time Instructor positions afterwards. 1 person is an intern. The one who is a contractor with NEI is full time. The Keeper at DAK Lodge is on a Full Time TA.

-The 5 of us who aren't in Animal Programs are in widely different positions from Revenue Management to Secretary to Cruise Line Trainer to Attractions Host to a position that I don't understand.
-The 5 of us that aren't in Animal Programs are Full Time or have Full Time TAs

So that's a peek into what a Presenter Group looks like 6 months post-internship completion. I loved my group and can't wait to see where Disney takes us, whether it is a life long career or a place to vacation.


As a side note, the 14 who aren't employed by Disney have a wide range of jobs too, including Museum Education Manager, part time Zoo Keeper, a couple Zoo Educators, Au Pair in Germany for a year, one still in undergrad, an Education Coordinator, one going to dentistry school, one works with the Salvation Army, one is getting her PhD, and a few that are between things (such as just moving across the country and getting married to her marine fiance, another getting married in a week or so, and a few that are a bit of a mystery to be honest after finishing their second PIs a month or so ago)

The Journey Down with Tigger

Well, we have made it to our hotel for the night! We left around 6:30 and drove most of the day. I had a really hard time saying goodbye to my dogs, my mom, and my sister. I know I will see my family at the end of July and can talk to them, but it is hard knowing they are on the opposite side of the country. I have lived a by myself for the majority of the past 4 years, so I know I won't have to deal with how to cook, etc, but Florida will be very different from the Midwest and the comfort my parents were just a few hours away just in case. With my dogs, I won't see them until I come home in January, so it was almost harder saying bye to them than my family. Especially since my old dog, Bailey, isn't doing well so I am worried I won't see her before she has to be put down. I hope that I can see her again. :(

Currently we are about 4 hrs away from Disney! I slept for a large part of the day while my dad drove, but I took a little stint at the wheel. I took pictures with my Tigger stuffed animal throughout my journey. Pretty much all of the other animal programs interns were also taking pictures with stuffed animals as they traveled. It is kind of cool that we all ended up with different ones! 

Saying goodbye to my dogs. :(

Tigger and I are packed up and ready to go!

Tigger, dad and I ready to pull away!

Driving through Ohio

Lunch in Kentucky

Driving through Tennessee

Entering Georgia

Tigger with the Olympic Torch in Atlanta

Stopping for dinner in Georgia

All ready for a good nights sleep in Southern Georgia!

I don't care if I never get back...

So the last few days have been super busy. I have had 3 doctors appointments to get all squared away with my medications and have nice teeth before going away to Florida for 7 months. Yesterday I also was able to fit in one last Tigers baseball game in before I leave. I hadn't been able to get to one this season and wasn't sure the next time I would be able to go. The game also doubled as a birthday game for my Dad (June 2) and my sister (June 5). Starting a few years ago we try to go to a game for our birthdays (works since all of us were born in the summer!)

Even though they lost (like the 4 games I went to last year...) it was still a lot of fun! My mom and I filled out over 100 All Star game ballots and we got some cool prizes. I got a Torii Hunter mini bat and a winter Tigers hat. My mom won a baseball hat (she wanted a new one!) and a cool mini-duffle bag. To fill out the ballots we had to punch all these holes out and we got them all over us! My sister, her boyfriend, and my dad didn't want to fill them out, but we did it for them so we could get more prizes! They all got boring stationary sets. My mom and I definitely got the best one! I even got a picture with my future boss! I guess Mickey is a Tigers fan! 

Today I worked a bit on reorganizing the things I am taking down to Florida. We also went out for my Dad's and Megan's birthday dinner. We just went to Red Robin since they both had free birthday dinners. I also got to say bye to my grandmothers since I don't know if I will have time to see them again this weekend before I leave. I also finally put my diplomas in their frames! Now I am the proud owner of two bachelors degrees!

Final-ly End of Classes

Notice what I did with that title? It is time for every students least favorite week of the year: finals!

The last few weeks have been VERY hectic and have been a rollercoaster of emotions.

Vienna: Last Sunday we had a Vienna kick-off dinner. It definately made everything much more real. I found out my living situtation while in Austria and I am happy to see what comes in store. I am going to be living with 3 other girls with a Hope alum in District 13. We (at least Janelle and I) were all very excited that we will be having a dog! Apparently we will be in an appartment above the family with our own balcony. She seems to really want to do things with us, which I am excited for. Before we found out our housing, Janelle's sister had said to make sure we go to the zoo. I looked it up and it happens to be in District 13 and is the oldest zoo in the world! I am pumped. I am a little sad though, since it seems we take a bus into the heart of the city, while I was looking forward to the subway. :(

Tod: My boss, friend, and professor has been having heart problems since the summer of 2011. I TA'ed his section of lab this semester and about a month-month and a half ago he stepped down from his position as an instructor of the lab so different professors rotated in to fill in. Well, he had been in the hospital and passed away last Sunday. It has been really hard. I begin to get closer to him this year working his lab, doing prep, and just going into his office to compare heart stories. I visited him in the hospital and I have to say it was one of the hardest things I have ever done. This week was extremely emotional and many tears were shed. I hope that I can serve Tod's memory proud to aim to live like him. I think I have to stop; I just am having a hard time thinking about it.

End of Semster: My mom came last weekend to take a bunch of my stuff home. I was with her when I heard about Tod and I am glad she was here. Everyone came for the Honors Convocation on Thursday where I received the Cancer Federation Award and was recognized for being Honorable Mention for the Goldwater Scholarship and for being intiated into Mortar Board. Yesterday my housemates and I went to the state beach to watch the sunset, got Captain Sundae, and watched The Hunger Games. Today I made 100s of notecards for my two Monday finals (Genetics and Health Dy). Tomorrow is going to be super busy (gross); I have Gen Chem review session, APO composite pictures and possible meeting with my Math Bio group. I also need to finish 3 assignments for Math Bio which will be a big focus of at least some of my day tomorrow.

Also, I didn't tell too many people about this, but I had applied for some internships at ESPN and Disney this summer and have finally gotten all of my No Longer In Considerations updates. O well. I will perhaps apply again and maybe apply for some Animal Programs ones in the future.


Well, I believe that is far long enough of a post. Perhaps more when finals are done. (5 days!!!)

Intro Time!

I feel that before I start this blog I need to make a compulsory introduction post, so here it goes!

While I am finishing up my junior year of college, I am attempting to figure out what I want to do with my life. I am currently pursuing a double major in Math and Biology, but honestly have no idea what I want to do after college. I am currently just trying to enjoy the remaining year of school I have while getting some experience to figure out what I enjoy. I guess that I am hoping that this blog will help me record my thoughts and memories of all the exciting things going on and allow those interested to keep up with my journeys. Enjoy! :)