Internship Spotlight 

Madison Newton is a Human Development and Family Science graduate currently in Auburn’s Master of Social Work program. During her undergraduate career, Newton completed lab hours at the AUELC and said she “fell in love” with the family atmosphere.

Newton said her experience as a graduate teaching assistant, setting up lesson plans, and following child-directed play prepared her for the Child Life internship, one of the most competitive in the undergraduate HDFS program. She said the most rewarding part of her job at AUELC was seeing children grow into social, independent students.

“The AUELC has prepared me tremendously for my future career. I want to work with children impacted by cancer. In that field, it is important to normalize their environment and the [AU]ELC does just that. I’ll have many lesson plans and activities up my sleeve to help make my future patients comfortable. I have the confidence to work with children and in my own abilities,” Newton said. “The AUELC is a unique opportunity that has shaped the way I view and work with children and their families. It has given me more than I could ever give back. I am a better person because of my time at the center and I am eager to start implementing what I learned in my professional career, and even my personal life when I have children one day.”