My name is Alaina Spaude, and I am currently wrapping up my role as the Program and Events Intern at Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. I am a junior at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, majoring in business management with a minor in marketing. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to intern at GMG, as it has allowed me to gain valuable business experience and discover my true passions within the field.

Throughout my internship, I have been working on an Internship Exploration Project with Ryan Vesey. Our goal is to retain as many high school and college students as possible by offering local internship opportunities. As a college student who has always been on the lookout for internship opportunities, I understand the importance of accessible and relevant work experience. This project serves as an excellent resource for both businesses and students.

Through our collection of local internship opportunities, students can easily access a variety of internship opportunities across many different career fields, clusters, and pathways. High school and college students will be able to search for specific internships based on their interests and obtain detailed information on hours, pay, job descriptions, and contact information. By using this tool, students will also become aware of available internship opportunities they might not find during their usual summer job search.

I know from personal experience that searching for internships can be a daunting task. Many businesses do not advertise their need for interns, making it difficult to find available opportunities and the right people to contact. However, with this resource, students can gain access to countless internship opportunities at their fingertips. This makes it incredibly easy to explore the various career fields, clusters, and pathways, identify interesting internships, and reach out to businesses. I know that if I were given this tool during my own search for internship opportunities, I would have taken full advantage of it.

That being said, we still need to gather more internship opportunities! By clicking this link, you can fill out your own internship opportunities. We encourage local businesses to participate in this initiative and list their available internships to help us share as many opportunities for high school and college students as possible. The specific career clusters we are hoping to gather more internship opportunities in are listed below:

• Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources
• Information Technology
• Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics
• Health Science
• Law, Public Safety, Corrections, & Security
• Government & Public Administration
• Education & Training
• Suuqgeynta
• Hospitality & Tourism

This initiative not only helps students gain practical experience but also strengthens the connection between our local businesses and the future workforce. I am excited to contribute to this project and help bridge the gap between students and valuable internship experiences. Together, we can create a thriving community where young talent is retained.

If you have any questions, please contact Ryan Vesey [email protected]!