Luther College student gains valuable experience at the Rochester Center for Children

Luther College student Sara Gehling ’23 recently completed an internship with the Rochester Center for Children where she gained valuable experience helping children with behavioral and cognitive disabilities.

“As a behavior therapist for the Rochester Center for Children, my role included daily individual behavior intervention and skill acquisition therapy sessions for children with autism,” said Gehling. “I was responsible for writing session summaries and patient notes on therapies, documenting patient responses to treatment, participating in individual and team training/education and completing other necessary additional interventions that would improve the quality of life of each patient based on their individual needs.”

Not only was the work fulfilling for Gehling, “every day of my internship, I was privileged to experience the impacts of this work by watching the growth and success of the children we served,” it provided her valuable insights into what her future could look like.

“I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity and internship experience, overall. My internship was a perfect way to bridge my interests in pediatric medicine, neuroscience and psychology. Additionally, the classes we took alongside our internships helped us in discovering (or re-discovering) our ‘why’ and purpose for our internships, career and life goals. It’s been beneficial to re-evaluate my life and career so that I can embrace my interests,” said Gehling.

Gehling is a biology major and is on a pre-health track. During this internship, she was taking part in Luther’s Rochester Semester program which provides students of all majors an opportunity to study and work in Rochester. With the college’s extensive alumni pool in the city, students have access to extraordinary learning opportunities catered to their interests and passions. The experience will help students discern career paths, acquire job-related experience, and facilitate career networking. Rochester Semester participants also enroll in two Rochester-based courses taught by Luther College faculty.

About Luther College

Luther College is home to about 1,800 undergraduates who explore big questions and take action to benefit people, communities and society. Our academic programs, experiential approach to learning and welcoming community inspire students to learn actively, live purposefully and lead courageously for a lifetime of impact. Learn more at luther.edu.