Council Update: Internships Help Preserve History

A creative year-long internship program has preserved the voices of Palm Beach County elders who grew up here in the era of segregated and then integrated schools, including their advice for children today.

The videos and recordings of eight residents from West Palm Beach, Riviera Beach, Delray Beach, Belle Glade and Pahokee were shared Thursday with the Children’s Services Council board, along with posters, banners and Instagram pages highlighting the work.

Paid interns from Palm Beach County high schools, working with mentors from Palm Beach Atlantic University under the guidance of Dr. Alisha Winn, an applied cultural anthropologist and adjunct professor at PBA’s School of Ministry, completed the project during COVID pandemic. The teams learned to use remote-work technology to interview the elders, then edit and compile the recorded interviews.

Plans are underway to share the project with the public.

In other business:

• CEO Lisa Williams-Taylor provided highlights of the 2021-2025 Healthy Start Service Delivery Plan that has been submitted to the Florida Department of Health for approval. CSC serves as the fiscal, administrative and programmatic agent for the Healthy Start Coalition of Palm Beach County.
• Chief Technology Officer Robert Kurimski reviewed cyber security practices to protect CSC operations as well as those of other agencies providing services funded through CSC.
• The board welcomed Interim School Superintendent Mike Burke to the Council, and presented a plaque to Dr. Donald E. Fennoy II for his service as a board member.