Using the human rights and history minor to make a major change
Senior Taylor Parker has spent the fall academic term interning at the Baltimore Hunger Project
By Kyle Hobstetter on November 17, 2022
The next step for Taylor Parker, a criminal justice major graduating from Towson University this spring, has always been law school. But an internship with the this fall provided a new perspective for her career path.
鈥淭his internship has taught me I would rather do something to help other people rather than something that鈥檚 more financially rewarding,鈥� Parker says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 changed my perspective of what field of law I want to go into and the type of company I would want to work for."
鈥淚t鈥檚 reimplemented the importance that giving back has in my life.鈥�
The Baltimore Hunger Project is a local nonprofit dedicated to eliminating weekend childhood hunger. The organization provides food packages for over 1,500 children in Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Harford County each weekend to bridge the hunger gap from Friday afternoon to Monday morning.
While working with the Baltimore Hunger Project, Parker did everything from marketing and social media to doing outreach with community partners and packing food.
鈥淚 think this experience was one of the reasons I chose TU, because I really wanted to take advantage of so many opportunities to get out of my comfort zone,鈥� Parker says. 鈥淭his internship has taught me to have a drive to do something for a bigger purpose. We鈥檙e helping kids in this community to give them a basic human right of not going hungry.鈥�
Parker discovered this internship opportunity through her human rights and history minor.
The minor, created within the College of Liberal Arts鈥� Department of History in 2019, requires students to complete an internship. To help students find the right opportunity, Kimberly Katz, a professor of history and coordinator and internship supervisor of the program, brings local organizations to talk with students on campus.
鈥淪tudents get the opportunity to see how their historical studies and studies in the human rights minor connect to real-world, everyday issues and problems,鈥� Katz says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how we try and connect students and their interest in history with something they could actually do in the real world. We want to provide practical work experience.鈥�
The opportunity benefits the partnering organizations in addition to the student interns.
鈥淭he partnership between 快活视频and the Baltimore Hunger Project is just really powerful,鈥� says founder and executive director Lynne Kahn. 鈥淏y partnering with 快活视频and Professor Katz, I have the opportunity to mentor students and help them understand food insecurity and how to relate to it, why it should matter to them and how they can make a difference.
鈥淚 enjoy working with Taylor and I love when she comes in here. We both learn from each other. It鈥檚 such a mutually beneficial relationship, and I鈥檓 excited to continue working with Professor Katz and other students.鈥�
For Katz, Parker is just one example of the amazing real-world opportunities for students involved with the human rights and history minor. Along with food insecurity, the minor also focuses on subjects such as racism, poverty, inequality, forced migration and violence against marginalized groups.
Through work in the classroom and providing internship opportunities for students, Katz hopes that students who participate will graduate knowing and understanding how the world has worked.
鈥淲e teach students to think very critically about themselves, their role in society and what society has to offer them,鈥� Katz says. 鈥淲e want to help students see their own potential.鈥�