Career Internship Program Ready to Launch in Fall 2016

Beginning this fall, South Pasadena High School juniors and seniors will be eligible to participate in the District’s first career internship program. The program is designed to expose high schoolers to a variety of careers while engaging them in substantive projects and hands-on experiences. Planning for the new program has been underway since December 2015.

“Research indicates that students benefit from seeing and using life skills within the workplace,” said Christiane Gervais, Assistant Superintendent of Instructional Services. “The South Pasadena Unified School District board and administrators are committed to providing students with opportunities for real-world experiences to prepare them for college and career.”

Students begin by completing two pre-requisite workshops covering career exploration and basic work skills. Once the workshops have been completed, the students are eligible to enroll in the internship course through the high school. The course requires students to apply and interview for available internships and then complete 60 hours of work at one of the participating businesses or organizations. Upon satisfactory completion of the internship, students will earn five high school credits.

“Giving our students the opportunity to experience various careers first-hand takes the skills they learn in the classroom one step further,” added Andrea Fox, South Pasadena Unified School District Career Internship Specialist.

The District is working with several businesses and organizations to offer internships in various fields, aligned with the K-12 instructional pathways that the South Pasadena Unified School District offers. With a focus on arts, business, engineering, computer science and bio-medicine, new companies are continuously being asked to participate in the program.

“Our goal is to grow the program so that a large number of students will be attracted to the program and will complete the internships. The program will be offered year-round – including fall, spring and summer – so that students can fit the program to their needs,” added Fox.

Employers and organizations offering student internships will be asked to sign a memo of understanding, outlining the responsibilities for both the District and the business. The agreement requires that employers and organizations provide an internship coordinator who will communicate regularly with the supervising teacher to ensure that the internship is working as expected.

At this point, the District is continuing its efforts to build the program through presentations and meetings with local organizations and employers. Additional details about scheduling for the pre-requisite workshops and signing up for the course will be available to students by the end of this school year. For more information or if your student, company, or organization would like to get involved, please contact Andrea Fox at afox@spusd.net. The community’s help in recruiting businesses to partner with South Pasadena Unified is critical to the program’s success as it continues to grow.

For more information, contact: Andrea Fox, South Pasadena Unified School District, afox@spusd.net.