The Mohawk Forest summer internship places one to two interns with the Caleb Group at Mohawk Forest Apartments in North Adams to work with teen leaders and elementary school children. The teens are part of a teen leadership development and employment program and the youth are part of the summer day camp program. The intern(s) work under Kathy Keeser, the Resident Services and Program Coordinator at Mohawk Forest. The internship is for 35 hours/week, for eight-ten weeks during the summer (specific dates are flexible based on the intern’s and Resident Coordinator’s decision).
The intern(s) work with teen leaders to help them set up and implement neighborhood improvement projects, including:
• Access to healthy and local food, such as nutrition or cooking projects for day camp, community awareness of local resources like the farmer’s market and working with teen-generated ideas for further programming
• Trash/recycling: which might include addressing community efforts and awareness of keeping the community clean and beautified, encouraging and teaching recycling, which last year included a recycling rewards program. Last summer a compost bin was purchased and the teens worked with the youth to separate food scraps for the compost from trash at lunch. The compost will be used for the small youth community garden.
• Fitness: working with the teens to lead current efforts for getting families and kids out and active and to brainstorm new opportunities.
• Other Environmental Awareness or action projects that the teens and youth develop. Last year this included an energy conservation tip sheet that the teens researched, printed and distributed to all 190 apartments. The tip sheet was also sent to the Caleb Group’s head office for distribution to other Caleb Group housing sites.
The intern(s) will work with an older elementary school day camp group, assisted by the teen leaders to implement neighborhood improvement projects in the Mohawk Forest community. The intern(s) will also bring an environmental focus into the summer youth day camp program through experiential education including field trips, activity days and special events.
The internship is a great opportunity for those who are committed to education, community empowerment, and to developing leadership opportunities end environmental consciousness in the Berkshires.
Interns are eligible to apply for funding through the Center for Environmental Studies, which offers a stipend of $400/week and housing on campus. Internship is open to current freshmen.
If interested, please send a resume and brief cover letter to Julia Yarak: [email protected]
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