Career Interns and Mentors Meet to Share Experiences
The Huntington High School career internship program is in full swing as 45 students have been matched with professionals throughout the community. Mentoring is taking place in a variety of occupations from teaching and medicine to law and the newspaper business.
On a recent cold winter afternoon, interns and their mentors turned out in the school library for lunch and to share their mutual experiences through the first half of the program.
“With work responsibilities being the primary topic of conversation when on the job, it was exciting for the students and mentors to have time to just enjoy each other’s company,” said Marcy Rhodes, one of the program’s facilitators.
Huntington High School librarian Camille DeCanio, who serves as another faculty facilitator, organized the luncheon to mark the mid-point of the internship experience. Whitsons Culinary Group provided an enticing spread of healthy and hearty fare. The program’s third facilitator, college counselor Bernadette Walsh, joined with students, mentors and building administrators in the celebrating the program’s continued success.
Interns have been placed with teachers on the elementary, middle school and high school levels, at St. Patrick’s School in Huntington Village, at the Heckscher Museum of Art, The Long-Islander newspaper, in the office of Suffolk Legislator Jonathan Cooper, in the Town of Huntington’s legal counsel office and in private medical and law offices.
“In addition to the on-the-job related responsibilities, interns attend bi-monthly workshops covering such topics as interview skills, resume writing, professional etiquette and career choices,” Mrs. Rhodes said. Reflective journals are submitted monthly.
Planning for next year is well underway. Incoming juniors and seniors are in the process of completing applications for internship placements. Many of them are eager to get started during the summer without the benefit of the one credit they receive during the school year.
“In addition to our established placements, new relationships are being developed with C.W. Post College and Huntington Hospital and with professional architects, engineers and media establishments,” Mrs. Rhodes said.
The program is quickly becoming a viable means for students to transition to their chosen post-high school endeavors. Facilitators say that students are anxious to discover career options via this work-based learning experience. For more information about the program contact Mrs. Rhodes at 673-2053 or mrhodes@hufsd.edu.
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