Internship program matches students with their passions

Stowe High School teacher Roger Murphy, who administers the program, said SHINE is designed to be “equitable and exportable,” and that it benefits students by giving them the opportunity to learn to communicate with adults who aren’t their parents, teachers or coaches — a networking opportunity out in the real world.

Murphy hopes the program prepares students for life in ways a classroom cannot.

During the program’s first semester — its inaugural run — eight Stowe High students held internships.

Murphy wants to make the program more equitable next semester by also providing transportation for kids — from Waterbury and Morrisville — to give students a broader array of opportunities.

SHINE does not have a GPA requirement and is open to any upperclassman in good standing at school. Murphy hopes to extend the program to sophomores in the future.

Murphy calls the program equitable because it allows students to pursue their own passions. Students can intern wherever they like and can even work on a substantial art project.

The choices students made this year showcase the diversity of the program.

Ethan Stewart interned at Inntopia, a software company in Stowe, and learned about programming in Java and Jquery. He worked on front-end user interface design for the company’s website. He helped Inntopia clients who use the company’s services but don’t have dedicated programmers on staff.

Stowe High doesn’t have any programming classes, but SHINE helped Stewart master a skill he otherwise would have had to teach himself.

Inntopia’s Kris Nolan said he was impressed with Stewart’s knowledge and work ethic. Carolina Rolfe worked backstage at Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, learning about the technology used in theater productions. She also got to shadow a sound engineer and worked Tedx Stowe.

Lexi James interned at Tektonika Studio Architects in Stowe, where she focused on sustainable architecture. She got the opportunity to meet contractors and learn about the design process, even drawing up some of her own.

Architect Ernie Ruskey was impressed with James’s work and said he wished he’d gotten more time to work with her.

Jacob Shapiro learned about bike assembly and maintenance at Ranch Camp, a bike shop and restaurant in Stowe. He learned how to fully assemble demo bikes, a complicated process that requires knowledge on how to properly attach a bike’s frame, bottom, bracket, drive train, bars, fork, brakes and shocks.

Ranch Camp’s Evan Chismark said, “Jacob was an animal. He always wanted to come in and work.”

Haley Spencer analyzed over a thousand pages of data on grants in Vermont aimed at decreasing food insecurity and increasing farm viability for the Vermont Community Foundation Project.

Spencer helped to measure the efficacy of the programs, analyzing data by grouping it based on commonalities.

Tori Duff worked with Vermont refugees in Winooski. She helped a father and his five children from the Congo by organizing a clothing drive as the resettlement program only gives families a stipend of $975.

Duff said that it was a great experience and that the children were eager to learn. She helped answer questions about English and American culture.

While this year’s internships didn’t tie directly to academics, next year Murphy plans to include formal evaluations to assess students’ proficiencies for the projects or jobs they pursue.