Community Internship
As part of the School and Community Engagement program component, each NELA Fellow participates in an internship with a community organization during the summer between the first and second year. A partnership between NCSU NELA, NC State’s 4H and the Rural School and Community Trust designs and delivers the NELA summer community internship. The Fellows work with organizations which have a significant, positive impact on children in northeastern North Carolina. Through their summer community internship experience, Fellows learn about the vision, mission, and daily operations of the organization; better understand how community organizations can work in conjunction with schools and other institutions to meet critical needs; and gain a deeper appreciation for the assets in the community that can be leveraged to support students. In addition, Fellows work with other leaders in organizations to design a plan for a community-based, school-affiliated initiative that addresses local needs, and develop a viable grant proposal to support this initiative. No financial commitment from the organization is required. A number of grants have been funded from this work. In Part IV (Program Effectiveness) there is a detailed list of the grants that have been awarded. The most recently announced award was for over $300,000 for a STEM focus program at a middle school. The outcome of having funded grants is exciting as they benefit the communities and the schools and they demonstrate to NELA Fellows the power of community partnerships.
View a video to learn about one of our Fellow’s Community Internship!