When you walk through the doors of 890 Broadway, take a ride in the man-operated elevators, and breeze past the studios to your desk, there is one thing you will inevitably encounter as an ABT intern: Raiser’s Edge, a fundraising database.
Although not the most glamorous and exciting feature of being an intern at one of the greatest ballet companies of the world, it is certainly important. In fact, I could say that it is the spine of the Development department. For any future intern, it is definitely a perk to have experience battling this sometimes frustrating software – but if you don’t, have no fear.
During the intern orientation, we all took a crash course on the workings of the database taught by ABT’s Database Manager. For the special events intern, be prepared to tackle Raiser’s Edge on a daily basis. All of the guests attending the Spring Gala are entered into the Spring Gala 2014 record along with information specific to that evening such as guests names and ticketing info (if you do become the special events intern, beware of the “pre-performance” data entry. You will slowly learn that RE can be your worst enemy as well as your best friend).
It can be overwhelming at times, especially when facing with the challenges of patrons who have the same name, or waiting for its long loading time. But by the end of your internship, you can proudly write on your resume that you have experience in entering and organizing information for over one thousand guests on the most popular non-profit database software!
Angela Hilario
Special Events Intern
Spring 2014
abtinterns 
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