TEL400: Innovation in Education Endeavors

L3: Interview Questions

[25 points]

Name: Sara Rodenbucher

Submission Date: 09042018
TEL400 Interview Questions Assignment

In Lesson 3 & 4 you will interview someone that is addressing social service or social
justice issues and ask about the impact policy has on their work. Find someone that is
working within a structured organization. This could be a non-governmental agency, a
government agency, a foundation, etc. It may be valuable to meet with someone within
your community of need for additional insight into your community. Remember that the
individual is giving you the gift of their time. Please be professional and prepared with
questions that you have carefully reviewed. Please plan on a brief, 30-45 minute
conversation. Record 5-10 questions aligned to your identified community in need
below. You can refer to the sample questions on page 2 as a starting point.

Interview with Mike Parker from Opportunity Council in Oak Harbor

Additional Questions (written by student)

Record 5-7 questions aligned to your identified community in need below.
1. How often do people in need reach out to you on their own?
-We get walk-ins daily, and some phone calls but usually by the time people get
to me they’ve been referred to us by other organizations.

2. What non-profit organizations are you paired with on island?

-Whidbey Homeless Coalition is a big one that we partner with. They’ve been on
the island almost as long as we have.

3. Is there any policy specific to Whidbey that makes it harder or easier to do your
job? How so?
-There’s been talk about opening up more low-income housing on Whidbey
Island, and that has caused quite a stir this past summer. We’ve gotten calls
about that, people are getting their hopes up, but until it really comes down as a
concrete action moving forward, we’re in a little bit of a standstill. That’s the only
thing that comes to mind though.

4. How long have you worked in this field? Is it different working on an island
specifically?
-I’ve worked in various similar offices for the last five years and before that, I
worked in business. I’ve only been with the Opportunity Council here in Oak
Harbor for the last two years. The resources are more limited than in say, Seattle
or Burlington, where you don’t have the issue of commuting to reach them. That’s
really the only major difference, and you learn to work with what you’ve got.
 TEL400: Innovation in Education Endeavors
L3: Interview Questions
[25 points]

5. What services does your office offer specifically for the special needs
community?
-Mainly we can offer them direction. Typically when they reach my office, they
already have a caseworker who is helping guide them through this process.
Since I am the lead of the Whatcom Homeless Service Center, housing is what I
deal with specifically.

6. Is there a separate group that works with the homeless population or does your
office field their requests as well?
-Our office works specifically with the homeless population. We do our best to get
them into housing, either temporary or permanent, dependent on their personal
goals. We combat homelessness using “housing first” strategies to prevent the
cycle from continuing. We also direct them to medical services and mental health
clinics.

7. Is your office funded federally or is this based on local support?

-We are locally funded from adjacent taxpayers. We are however partnered with
Americorp and several other national-based centers for change.

8. How would you go about locating community resources in a neighborhood in

which you have no relationship?
-Sometimes we get that issue with the newer churches in the area that want to
help, but haven’t formalized plans yet within the community. We’ve reached out
to offer guidance in the past with those situations. Offer them ideas of what
works, what doesn’t, help them create perimeters of what they can and can’t offer
people, that sort of thing. By the end we usually have created a partnership with
them too, we’re all working towards the same goal so that helps things out.
9. How is your previous experience applicable to the work you do here?
-I worked in business management for almost a decade, it helps me remain
organized and mitigates how I operate this portion of the Opportunity Council. A
business background helps me manage our funds appropriately.

….

L3: Interview Questions Rubric

Exceeds Meets Needs Improvement

25-23 points 22-20 points 19-0 points

Aligned Student has listed 5-7 Student has listed 3-4 Student has less than
Questioning for questions that are questions that may 3 questions listed or
Interviews unique to address understanding was not submitted.
understanding their their community in
 TEL400: Innovation in Education Endeavors
L3: Interview Questions
[25 points]

community in need need and the impact of

and the impact of policy on
policy on organizations.
organizations.