Extension internship provides networking and military support
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue Extension Service has joined forces with the National Institute of Food and Agriculture/U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of Military Community and Family Policy within the Department of Defense to offer college students internships to work with youth and child care programs on military installations around the world.
The groups created the Military Extension Internship Program to provide college students the opportunity to learn about child care and youth development as well as careers in those fields within the military.
"Students participating in the program need no experience in, or knowledge of, the military, but they usually come out of the program with a greater appreciation for it and awareness of careers available for civilians on military installations," said Purdue Extension internship coordinator Amy Schott. Interns are assigned to installations across the United States and Japan as well as in several European countries.
Interns have the support of 4-H Youth Development and the Cooperative Extension System, which offer educational resources needed to enhance child care and youth development programs, Schott said. The 4-H Youth Development program focuses on strengthening communities, in this case, military members and their families.
Interns are brought together for orientation before they are sent to their assigned site. Orientation is conducted in Indianapolis, where program guidelines, military culture and other topics related to military children, youth and families are covered.
The interns live and work on military installations for 10 weeks to six months and receive a broad range of experiences from child care to youth center management. They are compensated with a stipend or an hourly wage, depending on the military branch in which they intern, Schott said.
For more information or to apply, visit the Military Extension Internship Program website at https://www.ag.purdue.edu/extension/military/Pages/default.aspx
Writer: Jeanne Gibson, 765-496-7481, jegibson@purdue.edu
Source: Amy Schott, 765-496-7716, aeschott@purdue.edu
Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722;
Keith Robinson, robins89@purdue.edu
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