Summer Internship Program: Virginia Seafood AREC

Primary Program Area Focus: ANR

1. Describe your plans for this internship.  (i.e. What specifically will the intern be doing?)

For the 2026 summer cycle, the Coastal Resilience Extension Intern positoin with the Virginia Tech Coastal Collaborator (CTCC) will work as part of a collaborative team supporting both office-based outreach and hands-on field initiatives located in our offie in Hampton Virginia.

Key activities include:

• Outreach and Communication:  Writing articles and creating social media content to translate complex coastal science for the public.
• Technical Support:  Conducting research on coastal resilience issues, managing data, and utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for mapping.
• Field Work:  Participating in beach pollution clean-ups, supporting "living shoreline" projects, and assisting with water quality assessments.
• Stakeholder Engagement:  Attending partner meetings and helping facilitate 4-H summer camp activities for youth in the Hampton Roads area.

2.  Describe the knowledge / skills you expect the intern to gain from this experience.The intern will work closely with the 4-H Agent, Extension staff, and Community Partners to gain knowledge/skills in:

By the conclusion fo this experience, the intern is expected to have gained:

• Technical Proficiency:  Practical experience with GIS mapping, environmental data analysis and professional file management.
• Communication Excellence:  Skills in science communication, including the ability to provide outreach on coastal resilience and develop educaional materials.
• Subject Matter Expertise:  A deepened undersanding of sea-level rise, coastal flooding challenges, and the operations of the seafood industry.
• Professionalism:   Growth in problem-solving, project organization, and collaborative teamwork within a professional extensio environment.

3.  How will the intern learn about the breadth of VCE and our various program areas?

Although this role is primarily focused on Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR), the intern will be integrated into the wider Virginia Coooperative Extension (VCE) framework through:

• Cross-Program Collaboration:  Direct involvement with 4-H youth development programs and exposure to Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) through joint trainings.
• Mentorship and Meetings:  Attending monthly staff meetings where local issues are prioritized across all VCE brances.
• Institutional Context:  Learning the history and mission of VCE and its connection to Virginia's land-grant universities, Virginia Tech and Virginia State University.
• Community Immersion:  Participate in extension outreach and research on the community level to improve lives through varied delivery modes.