Wesley Brown: EPD – Through a series of connections with Wabash College alumni, I was lucky enough to meet Detective Peter DeYoung with the Evansville Police Department (EPD).  Detective DeYoung set up a four day long externship for me on the dates of July 20-23, 2016.  During this externship I got the opportunity to job shadow the daily lives of three different units within the EPD.

On Wednesday, July 20, I rode along with patrol officer Kyle Thiry on second shift from 3:00pm-11:00pm.  During this time I learned about the role and utmost importance of patrol officers in local law enforcement structure.  Patrol officers must be almost completely self sufficient, and use critical decision making skills in a timely manner in order to properly serve the public and at times protect themselves.  Patrol officers are literally the boots on the ground for law enforcement agencies, and are imperative in solving large and small issues in the community.  I did not realize how constant the work of a patrol officer was until Officer Thiry explained the dispatch and response system to me.  From the time Officer Thiry and I got into his patrol car, we were continuously on “runs” until the end of his shift.  During my ride-along we went on a variety of dispatched runs including criminal mischief, noise complaints, domestic disputes, breaking and entering, and assault in progress.  Officer Thiry responded to each call in order of urgency, while simultaneously handling each situation with equal diligence and concern.  My ride-along with Officer Thiry was an extremely exciting and eye-opening experience.

On Thursday, July 21, I shadowed a detective with the Intelligence Led Policing (ILP) Unit of the EPD from 12:00pm-5:00pm.  Usually this unit leads Gang Task Force operations and enforces the law by utilizing statistical data based on geographically focusing efforts on areas with high concentrations of crime in the city of Evansville.  However, on this day I rode with one of the ILP detectives during an important surveillance operation.  This was surprisingly the most exhilarating day of my externship because the detective I rode with was forced to exceed the speed limit and make several traffic violations, all in an unmarked pick-up truck in order to keep track of the vehicles we were tailing.  From my experience with the ILP Unit, it was clear that being a detective in this unique niche of law enforcement would be a thrilling career.

On Friday and Saturday night, July 22-23, I shadowed EPD Detective and Wabash College alumni Peter DeYoung on third shift from 8:00pm-4:00am.  Detective DeYoung was working on about eight different cases and investigations at the time.  In order to solve these cases and track down crime suspects, Detective DeYoung utilized unique tools such as county jail phone/video recordings, the EPD database systems, crime scene evidence, and even Facebook.  Detective DeYoung has a large amount of freedom within his shift regarding the way he performs his job, as often times he can do things on his own time as long as he completes each case file within a month of the investigations’ completion.  During my externship we left the office a few times to look for suspects at locations where they might have been.  While shadowing Detective DeYoung, he also interviewed two separate stabbing victims at a local hospital in order to find out what exactly happened in the situation, who the offender was, where they might be, along with any other useful information.  It was intriguing to view and learn about the process of criminal investigations from start to finish, in the detectives’ office and in the field.  Detective DeYoung said he uses valuable critical thinking skills that he developed during his four years at Wabash College and has been able to sharpen through his career in law enforcement.

This four-day externship was an eye-opening and exciting experience that has ultimately further inspired me to pursue a career in law enforcement.  On the last night of the externship Detective DeYoung gave me an application for the EPD and spoke with me in depth about the yearlong application process.  With my senior year and graduation from Wabash quickly approaching, the EPD will be one of the law enforcement agencies that I apply for this upcoming school year and hope to be a part of one day.  I would like to extend a sincere thank you to Detective DeYoung for his generosity in setting up this invaluable experience.  I would also like to thank all the brave men and women of the Evansville Police Department for their service to the community and for welcoming me during my time throughout the department.

Armuth ’19 with his externship advisor

Connor Armuth ’19: IRHA – If you are one of the people who thinks that externships aren’t valuable because of their length, you are wrong. Assumptions like that are what limit students. I know this frequently happens because I was one of those students who downplayed the significance of externships before I landed mine.

When I came to Wabash, I had no intentions of going into the “healthcare” field. The reason I am using quotes is that my assumption, the first problem being the word assumption, was that if I didn’t want to be a doctor or nurse or dentist I didn’t have a place in healthcare.

Thanks to the Indiana Rural Health Association taking me under their wing for their annual conference, I discovered an entire field of jobs that I had no idea existed. One of my good family friends works in healthcare policy and hospital management. He knew I was interested in business and wanted to expose me to the business sector of health. At first, I was skeptical, thinking that it would be a waste of my time because if I wasn’t a bio or chem major I wasn’t going to be involved with healthcare whatsoever. Little did I know, by the last day of the conference, I would have a summer internship offer for next summer.

Thanks to Career Services, I have had a little bit of practice networking just like every other student who has been to one of their networking events. By networking, I was able to communicate properly with professionals in the healthcare sector of business, and it turned out that I left with an internship offer. At first, I was shocked because this conference is the only exposure I had ever had to this type of work, but the man who offered it to me said he wasn’t worried about my lack of experience. If you show someone that you are motivated and willing to get out of your comfort zone, that shows the attributes of a valuable employee. Anyone can learn something like policy, but not everyone can approach it with the same attitude and willingness to work.

Getting out of my comfort zone led me to meet a group of amazing individuals who work in a field that I just so happen to find fascinating. Healthcare policy is something that liberal arts students have a place in. If it weren’t for our family friend pushing me to attend this conference, I wouldn’t know anything about the debates and board meetings on the change in healthcare policy.

I understand how lucky I was to have this opportunity presented to me after a casual conversation about school. This doesn’t mean that if you don’t have a connection you cant explore a new field. Professionals love to help out college students who are exploring the workforce because we are the future. It is very easy to think that you aren’t worth the time of a certain alum or that trying to talk to them would be a waste of their time, but I learned something that you have to conquer that fear. Believe it or not, they want to help you.

Sean Hildebrand ’14:  When I was searching for an externship that would help me in my goal to one day work in the NFL, I was fortunate enough to land an opportunity to visit the Indianapolis Colts Team Facility for a day.  While there wasn’t anyone on site that worked with the actual team, there were plenty of employees scrambling around to finish various projects before the preseason opener this Sunday.  I met numerous people who worked with the marketing, sales, and sponsorship side of the organization, and I instantly became fascinated with the work they were doing. 

The first man I visited was Jim Matis, formerly known as “Mad Dog” on radio station Q95.  After 25 years with the radio show, Jim became the Colts’ sponsorship sales account manager.  Even though promotions and sponsorships aren’t what I’m looking to get involved with, it was great to learn about what goes on behind the scenes in the Colts’ facility and at home games.  For example, all those company banners you see hanging around Lucas Oil Stadium became involved with the organization through Jim.  The Colts organization agrees to market the company name around the stadium and through commercial/radio ads in exchange for a hefty investment from the company.  The more sponsors he racks up, the more the organization profits. 

I was then passed on to Andy Schwartz, the man Jim goes to once he comes to an agreement with a new sponsor.  Schwartz then gets in contact with the sponsor and finds out what kind of promotions they want with the Colts (commercials, in-game ads, radio mentions, etc.).  Once that is settled, Schwartz sets up times when the company’s promotions will be displayed on television, radio, or during the game.  He showed me the script of all the promos that will be shown during this Sunday’s preseason game:  there were eight pages worth of ads that had to be shown throughout the game.  The unnoticed amount of work that the marketing side of the organization goes through every day is simply unbelievable.  Even though this isn’t the kind of work I want to get involved with, I gained an incredible appreciation for the work that this side of the organization does in helping the Colts become even more profitable.  I also found value in seeing how fast-paced and unpredictable life in an NFL organization can be.

The following day I visited the Finish Line headquarters to hang out with Andy Rankin, a Wabash alumnus of 1998 and a lawyer.  He does real estate corporate counseling with the company, which means he makes agreements with landlords to have a Finish Line at various malls and buildings around the country.  Finish Line began in Indianapolis in 1976, and has expanded to over 650 stores across the country.  There are also over 650 separate leases for each of the Finish Line locations in the United States, and two real estate lawyers to manage them.  To show me just how busy Andy can be, he gave me an old lease for a Finish Line store that is no longer open.  Numerous amendments were made on the lease by both Andy and the landlord, and the final draft ended up being 70 pages long.  The average lease for a Finish Line store takes him roughly two hours to look over and propose changes, and he usually does this about 5-7 times each week.  Fortunately for Rankin, this is about as difficult and boring as it gets for him at Finish Line Headquarters.

After spending a day with Andy, I gained a much better understanding of what lawyers do in the sporting goods industry.  While I am still uncertain about my specific career track after graduation, it was nice to learn what a law degree and other graduate school programs can do for you.  It was also great to see what a gigantic sporting goods headquarters looks like.  Along with the warehouse, conference rooms and hundreds of offices, the headquarters contains just about everything you can ask for:  lunch room, 80″ flat screen TV, arcade, weight room, basketball court, cross fit gym, and an actual Finish Line store in the basement.  And much like the Colts’ team facility, there is a lively and friendly environment around the offices and cubicles, and everyone seems to get along and have a good time with one another.  I’m grateful to have had the unique opportunity to visit two very distinguished businesses in the sports industry.

I certainly wanted to stay as productive as possible during these past four weeks of winter break.  Thanks to the assistance of Career Services, I had the opportunity to spend three days conducting an externship with Terry Hamilton ’89.  Mr. Hamilton, an economics major in his time at Wabash, is President of St. John Macomb-Oakland Hospital in suburban Detroit.  My exposure to the world of healthcare prior to this externship was limited to visiting a grandparent in a hospital, going to a check-up, or as a hospital volunteer in high school.  Administration may not be able to be seen from your back in a hospital bed; rather, it is what makes the process as seamless as possible (even though it may not always be all that seamless).

As a morning-time ritual, Mr. Hamilton and I reviewed two important sets of documents.  The first is a daily census of the hospital.  In my time at St. John’s, the hospital was experiencing numbers nearing capacity.  Upon my arrival, there were 22 patients in the emergency room who were going to be admitted to the hospital, but were waiting on a bed.  It’s great news for a hospital administrator when it comes to knowing “business is booming,” but by the same token, one cannot hope for high patient satisfaction ratings when waiting 12 hours or more for a room.  An important number that we looked at when it came to the operations of the emergency room is the LWBS, or left without being seen, number.  In the recent days of heavy patient volume, there were, at times, 10 to 15 patients who had checked-in to the emergency room, but had decided to leave before being seen by a physician.  By using linear regression through Excel, we were able to look at the number of ER visits and how that correlated to the number of LWBS patients.  With the equation you find from that linear regression, the question becomes: what number of ER staff will it take to minimize the LWBS number?

The second document set is a detailed safety report from the previous day.  Another great tool that St. John’s utilizes each morning is a “safety huddle,” where representatives from each department meet to discuss what occurred in the past 24 hours that was unsafe for patients.  This can range from falls to putting the wrong identification wristband to a delay in care.  It’s a great way for staff to constantly ask what can be done to better serve patients, and question what can be learned from situations where something does go wrong.

A side of the healthcare system that I didn’t know about prior to my visit was the role of a hospital president as a liaison between the hospital and physicians.  In the case of St. John’s, physicians at the hospital are not employed by the hospital, but instead choose to practice medicine there and choose to send their patients there.  Hospital administrators are forced to walk a tightrope and hold contract negotiations as though they were the GM of a professional sports franchise.  Essentially, the administrator must keep physicians happy in order to ensure that patients are happy and being treated with the utmost of care.

The experience reminded me, yet again, what great opportunities I’m afforded as a Wabash student.   I want to extend my thanks to Career Services, Mr. Hamilton for his kindness and time taken with me, and the entire staff of St. John Macomb-Oakland Hospital for making me feel so welcome and providing such a great environment for me to learn and observe.

Patrick Bryant ’16