Philadelphia Community Engagement Internship

As challenging as Extension work can be, we can change lives through collaboration and shared expertise. Since 2014, Penn State Extension Philadelphia has hosted a total of 40 full time undergraduate summer interns from Penn State's University Park campus.

Interns are assigned to work with one of our valued community partners by matching each their interests and skills with each organization's needs and visions. Through these experiences, the students, the partner sites, and Extension all benefit from working together. The interns' deep presence at our partner sites allows for reciprocal sharing of resources, knowledge, and experiences between interns and their partner sites, thus strengthening Extension's partnerships.

"I also helped to make our field trips more engaging for the youth. One day, the group and I went on a walking field trip to Greensgrow Farms to look at the plants. Each was assigned to do research on one of the plants/animals that they saw there. During our wrap up festival, the garden group presented their research on the plant that they saw and chose at Greensgrow." Olivia Grace-Chau, 2021 Penn State Extension Philadelphia Community Engagement Intern

Additionally, these partnership assignments are specifically chosen at locations that are influential, innovative, and reliable.  Student interns extend Extension's impact and provide insight into future programmatic effectiveness. During their internships, students open opportunities at their assigned organizations for Extension staff to have a more positive impact on growing practices, educational strategies, and organizational processes.

In 2021, three students participated in this community engagement experience. Interns and staff helped to complete an economic corridor assessment, strengthened a teen program at Norris Square Neighborhood Project (NSNP), helped to introduce Penn State Extension 4-H to Norris Square youth, interviewed key stakeholders, and distributed a community survey focused on community assets and challenges, provided service and technical support to five urban gardens, and worked on asset-based community mapping.

These efforts are part of a dynamic effort called Well Connected Communities (WCC) and include emergency food distribution, mental health awareness training for community educators, collaborative proposal writing, youth workshops on gardening and the arts, and field trips to local organizations.

WCC is a unique community collaboration led by Penn State Extension and sponsored by both the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the National 4-H Council. By working together with youth and community leaders, the program aims to lift-up the voice of youth in this vibrant community and seeks to maintain the deep community roots in Latin America.

All felt that the work they were given included opportunities to problem solve, develop their critical thinking skills, and expand their creativity. They also felt that they were given responsibilities consistent with their abilities. When asked about their proudest accomplishments, the students reflected on the unexpected joys of working with teenagers, the satisfaction that comes after successfully dealing with ambiguity, the positivity and openness of their coworkers, the need for reflection, and the power and excitement that comes from learning:

"At the end of my internship, I was told by my partner staff that I helped them, 'prioritize their own health during weeks of summer programming.'  We did this by checking in with each other regularly, both emotionally (how are you feeling today?) and physically (have you had lunch today?). We also planned two separate staff retreats to help keep everyone's energy up." Olivia Grace-Chau, 2021 Penn State Extension Philadelphia Community Engagement Intern

When asked about their greatest challenges, the interns found themselves grappling with confusion surrounding their role as leaders in community, limitations of time and other resources, the value of trusting your intuition, and the power of learning how to deal with adversity:

"My biggest challenge coming into NSCA (Norris Square Community Alliance) as an outsider was knowing my boundaries with the work I was doing. The tasks I was given involved a large amount of liberty which I used but didn't want to overuse. In many areas I had to take initiative but did so with the guidance of others, so I didn't do anything in a way that was not how they wanted". Rachel Zimmerman, 2021 Penn State Extension Philadelphia Community Engagement Intern

"Entering Southwest as an outsider was a challenge. While I never felt scared, I certainly was nervous. Especially as a white woman, I was not exactly in the majority. I learned to be comfortable in the uncomfortable and adapt to my surroundings. I was lucky to have Debbie and Suzanne with me to help guide me through the neighborhood and its assets. Now, I feel like I have a better concept of the geographic area. I can reference local spots and street names as well as barriers". Skylar McCullough, 2021 Penn State Extension Philadelphia Community Engagement Intern

The interns bring positive attention to Penn State Extension Philadelphia in other ways as well. For example, this year's wrap-up event was attended by over 15 guests, including Penn State Extension Philadelphia staff, community leaders and site supervisors from our internship partner sites, and staff and faculty from University Park. Each of the interns centered their presentations on their experiences during their 10 weeks with us. Each gave an eloquent and thoughtful presentation.

The interns themselves gain essential, real-life professional experience as well as an opportunity to apply their classroom knowledge to help solve community challenges. This internship impacts how the students think about their future career paths, how they interact with others, and how they approach their work in general. The experience has helped them to think critically and deeply into paths of community development and non-profit work.

Perhaps most importantly, the internship program helps to build trust among communities, partner organizations and Penn State as an institution of higher education. Having a Penn State intern allows our partner sites to expand into new projects, ones that they may not otherwise be able to pilot due to limited staff capacity. The presence of an intern gives them an opportunity to dig deeper into their mission and vision (hosting a new market, developing a rain garden, critical reflection around community engagement) 

As a result, the program has become more selective, the matches we create have become more intentional and effective, and the community of support for the program, both inside Penn State and within Philadelphia has grown stronger upon the conclusion of each cycle. We look forward to what the future brings to this robust and dynamic effort!

Thank You to our Supporters and Partners

• Norris Square Neighborhood Project (NSNP)
• Norris Square Community Alliance (NSCA)
• Health Annex
• Gemma Services
• Kelli Gardner, Assistant Director, Stewardship, College of Agricultural Sciences
• James R. Ladlee, Assistant Director Energy, Business & Community Programs
• Rosa A. Eberly, Director, Intercollege Minor in Civic and Community Engagement

Penn State Extension Philadelphia Community Engagement Internship Program Team

• Jesse Bilger, Well Connected Communities Youth Advocate
• John Byrnes, Extension Educator
• Heidi Chau, Administrative Support
• Suzanne Weltman, Extension Educator