As a Center on the University of Illinois campus, we value the education and professional development of our students. One way we are able to support students in this way, is through impactful internship placements. We understand the crucial role internships play in bridging the gap between academic learning and real-world experiences, equipping students with practical skills and invaluable industry exposure.

This semester, we provided several internship placements and asked one of our interns to share about his experience:

My name is Aldo Antonio Davila, and I am a recent UIUC graduate from the School of Social Work. I grew up in the inner city of Chicago in a low income-single parent household. To me attending college was a dream as well as an opportunity to leave the dangerous neighborhoods I grew up in. Fast forward four years later and I am preparing to return home as a well educated young man. This is due in part to hard work in addition to some fine tuning during my internship at the Chez Veterans Center.  

I have been interested in working alongside Veterans since I was a kid. As a directionless youth in the city, I had the privilege of being mentored by Veterans in my mezzo system. This influenced me to apply to the Chez Veterans Center for my senior year internship (Spring 2023). As my time is coming to a close, I reflect on how the Chez Veterans Center has allowed me to augment my professionalism. I have been challenged to step out of my comfort zone and take on responsibility for assignments that have a lasting impact. Some of my favorite highlights have been organizing the Chez weekly brief, structuring resource lists for scholarships as well as campus services, and developing an agency training to raise awareness for foreign Veteran outreach.  

Accomplishing my childhood goal of working alongside Veterans has been a poetic end to this chapter in my life. It feels incredibly cathartic to move into the next phase of my life. I look forward to attaining my CDL and joining my family’s transportation business back in Chicago in the coming year. With that said, I plan on utilizing my free time and social work skill set volunteering at Veteran organizations and this is a direct result of a flame that the Chez Veterans Center has lit in my heart for the advancement of Veteran services.