Community Engagement

Summer 2014 Paid Internships

If you would like to take action to make a difference in the fight against poverty and develop important life skills, gain experience working across difference, and advance your own career exploration process, consider applying for the national Shepherd Internship Program. Information is also available on our own Privilege & Poverty program website. These internships are available to students whose institutions are a part of the Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty (SHECP). It is a diverse group, including HBCU, faith-based, public, private, and work institutions (click on Member Institutions to view). A cohort of students from a variety of colleges and universities live together, providing a core group with whom to learn, explore, and grow. Interns receive a stipend, funding to support some travel/living expenses, housing—and participate in opening and closing conferences, in addition to the internship experience.

INFO SESSIONS:  Wed., Jan. 8^th at 4:15 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. in the conference room of 118 South Main Street.

Application Deadline: Tuesday, January 15^th (11:59 p.m.). MUST apply through both MOJO (search Shepherd, poverty) and the Shepherd Internship Program online application.

Paid internships are available in several fields of service including:  Art, Business Administration, Case Mgt., Community Organizing, Dance, Domestic Violence, Economic Dev., Education, Environmental, Financial Literacy, Food Security & Educ., Healthcare, Homelessness, Housing Access, Immigration/Refugee Services, Job Placement, Law, Migrant Services, Policy Reform, Prison Release, Residential Camps, Teaching, Women’s Advocacy, and Youth Outreach.
About twenty Midd students have participated over the last ten years! Learn more through the website links above and by coming to an Info Session.

Spend eight weeks as a paid Shepherd Alliance Intern during the summer working at an agency located in an urban or rural area in the Eastern U.S. Applications due January 15th.

What is the Shepherd Alliance Program?
The Shepherd Alliance unites student interns from Berea, Middlebury, Morehouse and Spelman colleges; Washington and Lee University law and undergraduate programs; and participating Bonner Scholar institutions with agencies that work to benefit impoverished members of society. Students learn first-hand about the multiple dimensions of poverty in the United States by working for eight weeks to strengthen impoverished communities and work alongside individuals seeking to improve their communities. The agencies, located in various urban and rural sites in the United States, focus on education, healthcare, legal services, housing, hunger, social and economic needs, and community-building efforts. Students work with agencies that fit their intellectual interests in order to develop their experience and skills for o civic involvement and employment.

When is the Shepherd Alliance Program?
The 2012 program will begin with an orientation June 8-10. After concluding volunteer work, students will gather for a conference, August 7-8, in Little Rock, Arkansas in order to report on their summer experiences. Students from each of the Alliance schools participate in the orientation and the closing conference. All expenses for housing and meals are covered for these meetings.

How do I apply?
Middlebury College students apply for the Shepherd Poverty Alliance Summer Internship through MOJO! www.middmojo.com Log in and search for “Shepherd Poverty” under Midd-friendly Internships and follow the instructions (complete the online application and upload a resume, transcript (can be unofficial), and two letters of recommendation. At least one of these recommendations should come from a Middlebury staff or faculty member. Selected applicants will be interviewed later in January. Finalists will be determined in late January, early February. Applications are due on January 15, 2012. Interviews will be held in late January. Successful applicants will be notified by the end of January 2012, with placements finalized
in mid-spring.

What if I have questions?
Attend one of the two information sessions:
Tues., Jan. 10, 2011 at 12:15 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. in the Center for Education in Action (EIA) Library in Adirondack House
OR Contact Tiffany Sargent (tiffanys@middlebury.edu or ext. 5082) about the internships.
Contact Tim Mosehauer (tmosehau@middlebury.edu or ext. 5105) about MOJO.

View the Shepherd Alliance information page http://www.wlu.edu/x13104.xml

How can I afford to do this?
The 3-5 students selected to represent Middlebury will each receive a $1,500 stipend. In addition, housing, meals and a small living allowance will also be provided. Note: U.S citizens may also be eligible to pursue a part-time AmeriCorps education award (voucher to be used toward education costs) valued at approximately $1,000.