One of the ways the Academy serves the community is through offering internships to college students interested in learning various aspects of working for a nonprofit arts organization. We offer opportunities in graphic design, theatre tech, development and fundraising, community outreach, and much more. Students get hands-on, real-life experience working with members of our staff to accomplish goals and projects that further the Academy’s mission to serve the community through arts and culture.
This summer 2019, we have 7 interns working with us in various departments.
Sydney Adams works as a graphic design intern in our Marketing and Communications Department, working directly under our resident graphic designer, Emily Psolka. Sydney has enjoyed the challenge of her job. “I love working under a time limit and learning higher quality design,” she says. She had the opportunity to design the playbill for our youth summer theatre camp production of Newsies.
Izzi Diaz is a social media intern with us this summer. As a Business Administration major focusing on Digital Marketing and Advertising, she’s received a lot of hands-on experience working with our social media accounts, content calendars, and covering shows. She especially loved covering the performances of Newsies.
Morgan Yeatts is a content intern for the Communications and Marketing Department. She writes pieces for the blog, press releases, and blurbs or descriptions for playbills and upcoming events. As a Communication Studies major and Creative Writing minor, she loves any chance to write.
Cameryn Norris works with our Education Department, helping out with summer camps and YMCA Outreach.
“I help out the instructors and directors with anything that they need to ensure that camp runs smoothly,” she says. She is a Studio Art major and plans to teach art in the future. She had the opportunity to use her creativity to help the kids in one of the theatre camps with a craft that related to the play they were performing. “The crafts turned out great and even though it was something small, it was very cool to see that the kids enjoyed it.”
Jenna Ashbaugh, another Studio Art major, has been helping with our summer art camps each week. She assists instructors, helps kids with their projects, and supervises activities. She loves working with the kids, and is also proud of her work cleaning and reorganizing the costume shop.
Merrin DeVan is an intern with the Operations department, and also works with special events. She says a lot of her work is behind the scenes, making spreadsheets, staying organized, and doing archival work.
As a Communications and Public Relations major, she feels she’s learned a lot about PR just from paying attention to how Director of Operations, Tabitha, interacts with the public. “Even though I’m more behind the scenes, I’m learning the importance of making sure that your target market is being heard and always catering towards them,” she says. “That’s a big part of PR; making sure that people are taken care of.”
Raegan Kirkpatrick is also an operations intern. She is an Arts Administration and Art History major and has enjoyed learning about the culture of an arts organization. “I’ve loved learning how it operates and how to work with other people, because this isn’t like a normal business office. There’s more collaboration, and we’re all working hard for the same goals.”
Raegan says that the work she has been doing is definitely preparing her for the workforce. “It’s real-world experience that will be helpful to know how to do.”
We hope that every intern that joins our team for a summer or semester leaves with real-life experience that will benefit them in their studies and strengthen their vision for future careers.
If you would like more information about our internships, visit the internships page.
