From working with children who have psychological disabilities to mentoring juvenile inmates to walking dogs, David “Bernie” Bernstein has already applied his Willamette University psychology and sociology lessons to the real world.
Walking dogs may not sound scholarly, but Bernie’s “Psychology of Learning” class used the volunteer opportunity at the local humane society to observe different types of conditioned learning.
Another of his psychology classes volunteered at Easter Seals Children's Therapy Center, giving them a firsthand view of children with autism and other disabilities.
But the experience that had the most impact on Bernie’s path was his internship at Hillcrest Youth Correctional Facility, where he met one-on-one with adolescents who are incarcerated for alcohol or drug offenses. He worked with young men to determine their treatment and help them eventually be released.
Bernie’s internship showed him how to turn his interest in criminal justice into a potential career in youth corrections.
“Willamette places a lot of emphasis on getting students out of the classroom and helping them find real-world experience,” he says. “My research and internship opportunities helped me see connections between what I read about in class and what actually happens in life.”
