High school interns are placed in a professional environment for 4 - 6 weeks, where they develop their skills and assess their capabilities while on the job and working with adults. Interns participate in a real-world work setting to determine the suitability of an occupation and the amount of preparation required for a particular career. The internship assists students in making career choices, building employment skills, and transitioning to the professional realm.
At present, there are opportunities at CINQCARE and the AnBryce Foundation. Former host sites have included The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of African American History and Culture, The Aspen Institute, The Brookings Institution, UnitedHealth Group, The Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, and Congressional offices on Capitol Hill.
Potential interns will have participated in the AnBryce Foundation’s Student Adventures in Leadership (SAIL) high school leadership program and have completed the Rites of Passage Program at Camp Dogwood Summer Academy. Students participate in workshops that cover everything from resume writing and preparing for job interviews to recognizing personal leadership qualities and capitalizing on them to succeed. Interns are selected by AnBryce program staff after an application process with interviews conducted by professionals from the internship sites as well as business, government, legal, and education sectors.
Internship sites benefit from having diverse, competent, highly trained, and accountable high school interns capable of accomplishing assigned goals and tasks. Site visitors meet with the internship supervisor and the intern twice during the program to review status and see that goals for both site and intern are being met. The internship program also serves as a pipeline for talent recruitment.
The Pillors of Excellence Summer Internship Program began in 2004 under the leadership of the late Brenda Pillors, former Board member of the AnBryce Foundation. The Program is named in her honor in recognition of her commitment to providing internship opportunities on Capiol Hill for our high school participants. The program has since expanded to include internship opportunities in the arts, philanthropy, and education.
