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Summer Internship Program: Arlington County

Arlington

Primary Program Area Focus:        ANR, 4-H

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

The intern will work primarily with the ANR and 4-H Agents, but also will spend time working with the FCS Agent and FNP staff to gain a better knowledge of the various programs offered in Virginia Cooperative Extension.

Skills, interests, and qualifications:

        ·  An interest in agriculture, youth development, food security, and local
           implementation of Extension programs

        ·  Some knowledge of gardening, nutrition, and/or cooking

        ·  Personal computer, WiFi access, and personal transportation (vehicle)
          are required as this is not a remote position

        ·  Attention to detail 

        ·  Experience in photography, video creation, or social media is a plus

Job Description and Expectations

    ·  In-person work in the office during office hours unless otherwise specified site
       visit is approved

    ·  Assist with administrative duties

    ·  The ability to effectively communicate with both youth and adults, internally and
       externally

    ·  Intern will make site visits to experience soil testing, plant and insect collection,
      data collection, and observe plant diseases and insect pests

    ·  Intern will travel with the ANR agent to training in Northern District and will
       participate in pesticide recertification training for professional applicators

    ·  Demonstrate leadership in the design and implementation of the Arlington
       County Fair which takes place August 16-20, 2023

    ·  Assist in 4-H Junior Camp planning and attend 4-H Camp July 2 to July 6, 2023

    ·  Learn about food production and nutrition education programming at the
       regional food security meetings

    ·  Create educational materials and conduct demonstrations and outreach at local
      farmers markets, food distributions, and FNP events

    ·  Activities may include assistance with financial simulations.

Agriculture and Natural Resource programming:

    ·  Assist with pesticide applicator recertification training

    ·  Participate in site visits and training on Spotted Lanternfly and Deer
        overpopulation

    ·  Work with the Help Desk Extension Master Gardeners to address public
        concerns about plant disease and insect management. 

    · Prep for the VCE exhibits at the Arlington County Fair

    · Participate in Demonstration Garden activities and educational outreach

4-H programming:

    ·  Assist in planning for Junior 4-H Camp

    ·  Coordinate, plan and implement activities related to Arlington County Fair

    ·  Attend 4-H Camp in Front Royal July 2nd – July 6th 2023

    ·  Design, create, and edit monthly 4-H newsletter

    ·  Market 4-H programs to community partners

Family Consumer Sciences programming:

    ·  Assist FCS agent with nutrition, wellness and financial education programming
       including writing social media posts and developing presentations and outreach
       activities. 

2. Describe the knowledge / skills you expect the intern to gain from this experience.

The intern will gain an appreciation for and understanding of Virginia Cooperative Extension and the program areas that are served in Arlington County. The individual will learn about special event display development and organization and will be able to observe and participate in a volunteer organization leadership role. Opportunity for a self-directed project related to urban agriculture, youth development, or food production will be available. Intern will gain public speaking skills and experience working with diverse audiences. Additionally, they will be given tasks where they will need to demonstrate the ability to perform without direct and constant supervision. The intern will also participate in a mid-term review of their internship experience to ensure that the expectations of both the intern and VCE unit are being met.

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

The Arlington Extension Office offers the intern the ability to see the work done and role within a community through all programming areas of Extension, with a focus on ANR and 4-H programming. The intern will be exposed to programs that Extension offers in an urban setting in Virginia through individual and cross-collaborative work with extension agents covering FCS, 4-H and ANR. Additionally, the intern will learn about the program assistants who teach nutrition to SNAP recipients (both youth and adult). The intern will get hands-on experience working with the agents to see the various ways programs are delivered and offered. At the conclusion of the internship, the intern will deliver an oral presentation covering their experiences, knowledge gained, and skills enhanced.

Travel reimbursement for automobile mileage is provided. Programmatic oversight by Kirsten Conrad and Deborah Madden.