Partnership with Wells Fargo supplies paid internships
Seven Alvernia students expanded their career skillsets this summer by completing paid internship experiences with local nonprofits as part of the Office of Career Development's newly established Greater Reading Nonprofit Internship Program.
"This program is the perfect marriage of Alvernia's commitment to the Greater Reading community and to offering life-changing experiential learning opportunities to our students," said Alvernia President John R. Loyack.
Each intern received a stipend of $1,250 for their work. A $5,000 grant from Wells Fargo and some additional financial backing from the Holleran Center for Community and Global Engagement's Office of Career Development funded the experiential learning opportunities.
"Our students were afforded great real-world learning opportunities with transformative Greater Reading area nonprofits thanks to our partnerships locally and the generosity of Wells Fargo," said Alvernia's Director of Career Development Megan Adukaitis. "We hope to continue the success of this first cohort into future semesters through new strategic partnerships."
Students gained experience in various fields such as communications, accounting, economics and criminal justice with BCTV, Berks Agricultural Resource Network, Berks County Bar Association, Habitat for Humanity of Berks County and the YMCA of Reading and Berks County.
"BCTV's experience with the program was really great and having Khalil Eaddy on our team for a few weeks brought energy and new ideas to some programs and projects that we needed extra help with," said BCTV Executive Director Heather Adams. "We understand that many students need to pass on valuable nonpaid for-credit internship opportunities in exchange for paid positions, especially in the summer months. Knowing that this program could compensate Khalil for his work hours gave us the reassurance that his time here was fruitful for him not only in learning but in being paid for his responsibility and accountability."
Alvernia's Office of Career Development provides opportunities for students to build their professional and job-search skills; interact with employers and recruiters; discuss their educational and career paths; apply for work-study opportunities across campus; assess their work and co-curricular experiences and identify transferable skills, and participate in the job-search process.
