Internship Opportunity for Workshop Facilitation
Opportunity for Fall, 2025 through Spring, 2026
Internship Opportunity to lead the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Workshops to Enhance the Physical, Emotional, and Mental Wellbeing of Individuals in Skilled Nursing Facilities/Long-Term Care
Location:
This is a hybrid internship - In-Person and Virtual
Interns will be facilitation workshops in several skilled nursing facilities throughout New York and New Jersey. We will assign candidates to locations based on where you live. We need interns who have a valid drivers license and a car. We will reimburse for mileage.
Time Commitment:
8-12 hours per week, or 14 to 20 hours also available.
We are accepting applications for the following cohorts:
Fall Cohort: September – December, 2025
Spring Cohort: January – May, 2026
Fall Cohort: September – December, 2026
Duration:
One or two semesters, based on your availability.
Unpaid internship:
Over 75 interns participated in Soaringwords field placements as part of their mandatory curricula.
Who Should Apply:
Self-starters interested in promoting a positive paradigm of aging for individuals and the healthcare professionals caring for them. Social Work, Psychology, and Public Health majors, or strong undergraduate students pursuing health related degrees.
Current Positions:
Seeking several candidates for Fall, Winter, and Summer cohorts to lead in-person SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Workshop Series for residents and staff at skilled nursing/long-term care facilities in New York and New Jersey. Applicants will be matched with facilities in their region. Reliable transportation and driver’s license required. Reimbursement provided.
Extensive On-boarding/Training will be provided by Soaringwords before you begin your internship.
About Soaringwords:
Soaringwords’ mission is to inspire individuals and health care professionals to take active roles in self healing to experience greater physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing. Since 2000, Soaringwords’ interventions have been shared with more than 500,000 individuals in communities experiencing health inequity or serious illness. We are proud to have partnered with 196 hospitals around the world and health and human service agencies throughout North America. In 2020, Soaringwords provided the content for the launch of the World Economic Forum’s Healthy Cities initiative working with the Jersey City Department of Health & Human Services.
To date, Soaringwords has had the privilege of mentoring over 432 talented interns and fellows from top universities, colleges, and graduate programs. This internship provides a unique opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of individuals living in long-term care facilities while developing valuable skills in workshop facilitation, positive psychology, and healthcare.
Qualitative and Quantitative Findings from the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Workshop Initiative:
Data from our launch among 26 NJ-based long-term care facilities shows significant improvements among three essential categories:
- 95% of workshop participants discovered and appreciated their strengths
- 83% of workshop participants learned and used new skills
- 88% of workshop participants experienced a heightened sense of community, connection, and belonging
Resident testimonial videos:
John, Resident, Coral Harbor Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center
Amy, Resident, Sinai Post-Acute, Nursing & Rehab Center
Staff video:
Krishna Shah, Director of Social Services, Bergen New Bridge Medical Center
Intern Responsibilities:
We are looking for dynamic, empathetic and highly motivated interns who are comfortable and skilled in leading direct service programs. As a Soaringwords Facilitator, you will be responsible for leading the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing workshops which are pre-recorded professional workshops designed to enhance the physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing of seniors living in long-term care facilities. Twenty minutes of the workshop content is delivered in the pre-recorded videos. You’ll be the person leading the group discussion which is an integral part of the experience as each immersive session includes dozens of appreciative inquiry prompts. You will be using your skills to lead thought-provoking and meaningful discussions.
Each week you’ll lead a different workshop for 7 consecutive weeks before moving on to different facilities. You’ll lead a morning workshop and an afternoon workshop (at 2 different facilities). Your role will include liaising with senior staff at the long-term care facilities (to coordinate schedules and keep track of progress), leading the actual workshops and deeply engaging with participants, and promoting the core principles of positive psychology, posttraumatic growth, and positive aging. You will help administer the pre and post workshop surveys that each participant completes so that we can collect empirical data to measure the impact of the workshops on participants’ wellbeing. The findings are presented to the Department of Health and also presented at International and national conferences. This is a great opportunity to gain practical experience in workshop facilitation, program delivery, and positive psychology in a healthcare setting.
Each week you will complete a Facilitator Feedback form after you finish leading each workshop. This is a summary of your activities capturing the tenor of the sessions, journaling about specific learnings and encounters, and sharing your experiences. You’ll be able to join in a weekly zoom session with Soaringwords’ CEO (your supervisor) and the other field placement interns to learn from each other in a Community of Practice where bright, energized people will come together to share and grow.
Why there is a Tremendous Need for the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing workshop initiative: Soaringwords is leading the way to create a new paradigm of Positive Aging:
In many parts of the world, life expectancy has increased, while the quality of life for seniors has diminished. This trend is especially visible in Western cultures with prevalent disparaging attitudes about aging and an obsession with youth. Stereotype Embodiment Theory, (Levy) Stereotype Embodiment Theory proposes that negative age beliefs bring about detrimental health effects, misleadingly characterized as inevitable consequences of aging. Common negative tropes include: incompetent, senile, decrepit, slow, and out of touch. Positive age beliefs add 7.5 years of life. Soaringwords’ Appreciative Inquiry workshop prompts and content ignites group discussions that foster strengths-based recognition, agency, resilience, and social interaction.
Soaringwords is dedicated to transforming the way our society views aging by introducing positive psychology interventions into long-term care settings. We focus on empowering seniors and caregivers with tools to promote mental, emotional, and physical wellbeing. Our workshops are designed to counter the negative stereotypes associated with aging and offer seniors the opportunity to live more fulfilling lives despite the challenges they face.
Soaringwords approach is built on a strong foundation of positive psychology, appreciative inquiry, and posttraumatic growth. These approaches focus on practices that bring out the best in individuals and help to enliven those facing the natural limitations of aging. Soaringwords’ empirically-based immersive 7-part workshop series is built on positive psychology interventions designed for older individuals residing in long-term care who have traditionally been overlooked.
The 7 workshop sessions are delivered in person to groups of 15 to 30 residents in long-term care, and also shared with groups of employees working in long-term care. Each session lasts from 60-90 minutes with pre-recorded professional video content interspersed with many immersive appreciative inquiry prompts. The seven topics are taken from the SOARING Into Positive Wellbeing Model. The content is built upon Positive Psychology interventions - including but not limited to: VIA Strengths analysis and strength-spotting among all workshop participants (Niemec); Exploration of The 5 Domains of Posttraumatic Growth (Tedeschi & Calhoun); Growth Mindset exercises (Dweck); Positive Narrative exercises (Pennebaker); Gratitude Visit (Tomasulo) and Gratitude Letter (Seligman); Best Future Self (King) and dozens more.
Who Should Apply:
- Social Work, Psychology, and Public Health majors, or strong undergraduate students pursuing health related degrees.
- Passionate about working with seniors and improving their quality of life
- Comfortable leading group activities and facilitating discussions
- Interested in positive psychology and its application in healthcare settings
- Strong communicators, with the ability to engage participants with authenticity, empathy, and grace
- Organized and able to manage tasks and schedules independently
- Creative and adaptable to various participant needs and settings
What You’ll Gain:
- Experience facilitating workshops and leading group activities with seniors
- Insight into positive psychology and its application in real-world healthcare settings
- Opportunity to develop leadership and facilitation skills
- Regular guidance and feedback from Soaringwords’ CEO to support your personal and professional growth
Apply Now:
If you are passionate, creative, energetic, and eager to make meaningful contributions to a small team, we want to hear from you. Please review the application questions below and submit your responses, along with your resume, to Lisa Honig Buksbaum at lisa@soaringwords.org and Greta Rozensweig at greta@soaringwords.org. If your application aligns with our needs, we will contact you to set up a virtual interview.
Warm regards,
Lisa Honig Buksbaum, CEO & Founder, Soaringwords
Greta Rozensweig, Community Outreach Manager, Soaringwords
Soaringwords Internship Application Questions:
- Name
- Address
- Cell Phone
- Your relevant degree (currently enrolled or graduated)
- Any relevant previous experience
- How did you hear about Soaringwords?
- What do you hope to accomplish in terms of professional development skills during your internship with Soaringwords?
- What do you hope to gain in terms of your own personal growth and development?
- What are your greatest strengths? List these attributes and show examples to demonstrate how you have put these skills into action as an individual and on a team.
- Why should Soaringwords choose you for this internship?
- What is your proudest accomplishment?
- What is your work style? Can you give examples of successful projects or work experiences and your role?
- How do others describe you (your friends, colleagues)? What are the traits that make you unique?
- Are you currently pursuing a career? In what area?
- How many days and times are you available to intern at Soaringwords (Example: Monday from 12-4)? When would you like your internship time to start and end?
- Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
- LinkedIn (optional)