Clockwise from top-left: Sarah Bunjo, Nora Garland, Matt Volpe, and Laura Vargas
By Linnea Langkammer
This fall, Penn Memory Center welcomed a new group of social work interns to help develop and maintain psychosocial support programs for patients and caregivers at PMC.
Sarah Bujno, Nora Garland, Laura Vargas, and Matt Volpe are students in the Master of Social Work program at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice.
The interns will work with Executive Director Felicia Greenfield and Assistant Director of Care Programs Alison Lynn. Greenfield called the annual corps of social work students “integral to the PMC’s training mission.”
“The students take a class at Penn that teaches theoretical frameworks in social work practice, and they draw on their classroom learning to apply their skills in the field,” Greenfield said. “Both PMC and Penn Neurology interns are learning how to assess patients’ and families’ needs, and then they are partnering with patients and families to provide clinical interventions with the goal of keeping the patient safe and supported while helping caregivers manage their stress,” Greenfield said
Bujno is a “macro” intern, assisting Greenfield in program development and evaluation. During her internship at PMC, Bunjo will focus on data analysis, program evaluation, and research. She is a Penn Aging Scholar and Public Health and Cognitive Aging program participant. She is passionate about improving health equity and program efficacy for older adults.
Garland, a clinical intern with Penn Neurology, earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Human Development and Family Studies at Michigan State University. She is passionate about helping individuals, families, and older adults and is looking forward to working with patients diagnosed with cognitive impairments as well as their caregivers.
Vargas and Volpe are clinical interns with PMC and will directly support PMC patients and families.
Vargas graduated from the University of Michigan in 2017 with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and International Studies and a minor in Community Action and Social Change. At PMC, she will also be involved with the Caregiver Support Group, Memory Café, and the intergenerational Building Bridges program between PMC and CHOP.
Volpe earned his BA from Pennsylvania State University and his MSLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a member of the Penn Aging Certificate Program and is most interested in serving the mental health needs of older adults and families. Prior to his enrollment at Penn, Matt worked as an editor, a librarian, and most recently as the manager of an adult literacy program.
PMC welcomes the new additions and looks forward to their direct assistance with patients and families and contributions to social programs.