An update from Katie, a University Scholar and senior CCPA major with a minor in psychology. She is working for an International Non-Governmental Organization called Mencap in London for six weeks this summer:

I can't even begin to explain how much fun I am having here or how much I love London! Since I last blogged, we have been going non-stop, trying to see as much of the city as we can - all while helping to change the world through our work at our NGOs.

I'll start by talking about my work at Mencap, the UK's leading organization for people with a learning disability. Work has been great, and I have already learned a great deal about how Mencap works and all of the great things that they are doing in the UK for people with a learning disability.

During my first week they just happened to be having a new staff induction where they have a representative from many of the departments come and explain briefly to new staff members from around the nation what they do and how it helps Mencap. They had representatives from various teams in the campaigns, communications, and fundraising departments, which allowed me to understand the bigger picture of how a major NGO operates.

A range of duties
What has been great in my work is that I have gotten to change departments, so I've really been able to immerse myself in different aspects of the organization. My first week I was with the special events-fundraising team and I researched different non-profit events in the U.S. and compiled a list of them that were different from some of the normal events they have in the UK. Hopefully they will decide to use some of the ideas I came up with for new, fresh events to raise money for Mencap.

During my second week, I moved up a floor to the Individual Giving team and went through lots of surveys, compiling and analyzing all of the information gained from the surveys.

This week I've moved to the main Mencap building at the National Centre and I'm working in the Press team - it's been great so far. I've compiled press clippings, written two press releases and found information about the different ways that Mencap helps people with a learning disability gain employment.

Everyone at Mencap has been really great with teaching me and allowing me to gain lots of work experience that will help me in the future. For the next two weeks, I'll be back with the special events - fundraising team, so I am sure I'll continue to learn a lot.

And a range of fun
Work has been fabulous, and we've all still managed to find time to explore all that London and the UK has to offer. One of the coolest things of the trip has definitely been the Jack Johnson (and friends) concert in Hyde Park. The line-up was incredible - Mason Jennings, G. Love, Ben Harper, Jack Johnson (left) and then surprise guest appearances by Matt Costa and a special treat with Jimmy Buffett. That will be a concert that I never forget.

Other fun things that I've done include frequenting the local pubs and clubs, watching the UEFA Euro 2008 championship game at a pub with all the other crazy football fans, going to church at St. Paul's Cathedral, making the mistake of going shopping on Saturday afternoon (so busy, I was afraid!), visiting Salisbury before going to Stonehenge at sunrise, and then touring Bath, where we saw the Ancient Roman Baths and went through the Fashion Museum, and finally going to see Les Miserables, my favority musical.

We decided to celebrate the Fourth of July at a very American bar called the Sports Cafe, and we even had hot dogs from a vendor in Piccadilly Circus in honor of the holiday!

The National Portrait Gallery was incredible and had a special portrait competition on display that had some portraits that I couldn't even tell had been painted - they were that good!

We had the great pleasure of being able to tour through the Houses of Parliament - there is an incredible amount of history and tradition with everything that they do here. We've discovered that Trafalgar Square is a multipurpose venue in which we've seen a rally for Israel, we walked through the end party of the Gay Pride Parade, and also watched the London Grand Opera live on a huge screen. One thing is for sure, there is always something new to do or see in London.

This past weekend, we all went to Scotland, which was beautiful and tons of fun, though the hostel on the first night was scary! Thankfully the second two nights, the hostels were great, otherwise I might be scarred for life from that hostel. Besides that, the trip was fabulous. We saw so much in such a short period of time, including the William Wallace Memorial, Hamish the famous "hairy coo" (hairy cow in a Scottish accent), Glen Coe, Loch Ness and Nessie!

We stayed in Broadford on the Isle of Skye and had the most fun in town at the pub with all of the locals. There was a guy performing, and he kept playing really fun American classic rock tunes, so of course we were all dancing and singing along - at some points I don't think you could even hear him singing because we were all belting the songs out!

The other night we stayed in Invershin at Haunted Castle. It was so spooky, and there were tons of ghost stories to scare all of us. We also stopped in some of the small towns in the Highlands for lunch breaks, and they were the sweetest towns - hopefully I'll be able to go back one day to spend more time in the towns, to do a bit more exploring.

Our tour guide Colin was great, he knew SO much about Scotland and had great stories to tell us. He must be commended for putting up with 41 crazy American girls and only 1 boy; I think he had fun with us though.

Wow, I can't believe all the great things that I've seen and done during my time here. Hopefully it's only just the beginning, and I'll have tons more fun. I can't believe we're halfway done ... I never want to leave London! I've definitely found my new home away from home. If you've never been here, come as quickly as you can!!
More to come ...

Cheers,
Katie