Albemarle County
Primary Program Area Focus: 4-H
Describe the plans for this internship. (i.e. What specifically will the intern be doing?)
The Albemarle County summer intern will work primarily (anticipated time commitment: 70%) with the 4-H agent on program planning and preparation, marketing, program delivery and evaluation. The intern will assist with 4-H teen leaders training, which has a focus on preparing teens to be Counselors at Junior Camp as well as teaching basic leadership skills. The intern will have the opportunity to help in preparation for training as well as interacting with the youth during training and in the Camp environment. The intern will be expected to attend Junior Camp, but will be engage only 40 hours. The Albemarle County Fair is an agriculture fair of which 4-H is the main focus; therefore, 4-H gives much time in preparation for this event. The intern will help to develop a marketing displays for extension and a specific display for Albemarle/Charlottesville 4-H. New competitions and activities will be added to this year’s fair. The intern will have the opportunity to help development, implement and evaluate these activities. 4-H works closely with FCS and the FNEP program assistant in delivering Healthy Lifestyle programming. The intern will have the opportunity to help in the delivery of these programs in classes scheduled with collaborating organizations, such as Boys and Girls Clubs. Albemarle/Charlottesville 4-H is developing a marketing campaign in which the intern will have the opportunity to video, photograph, and develop skits, PSA, etc.
For Agriculture and Natural Resources Programming (Agriculture and Natural Resources ): Commercial and Residential Horticulture (anticipated time commitment: 30%), the intern will work in three main areas. They will work with the Master Gardeners in serving residential horticulture needs and hone their problem solving skills by assisting at the Horticulture Help Desk. They will assist in commercial horticulture through visits to farms requesting assistance – ie. pest management, Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) consults, food safety programming. Finally, in helping to create marketing tools, for example – putting together handouts on destructive landscape practices (ie. mulch volcanoes, tree topping) to include in publicity kits to be sent to media, homeowner’s associations and landscape businesses, assisting in the production and distribution of newsletters to assist farmers and homeowners with common problems and questions and helping to set up of the Albemarle County Fair display: which can highlight local food production and our county’s agriculture history.
Describe the knowledge / skills that the intern is expected to gain from this experience.
The intern will gain knowledge largely from 4-H and its role within Extension and will learn first-hand how 4-H responds to local needs and collaborates with local partners and university specialists. The intern will have interaction with youth and adults that will give valuable experience in youth and volunteer development.
They will also start to develop an understanding of programming planning, implementation and evaluation using the VCE programming process model, develop interpersonal and organizational skills used to implement VCE programming through work experiences and develop a better knowledge and understanding of VCE’s four program areas and how they are implemented in Albemarle.
How will the intern learn about the breadth of VCE and our various program areas?
The intern will have the opportunity to experience how 4-H acts as the youth arm of Cooperative Extension, which in our local area includes Agriculture and Natural Resources, 4-H, FCS as well as the Virginia Master Naturalist Program. The Albemarle County office of VCE is fully staffed and offers the 4-H programming with youth in all these areas.
The intern will also have the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs around the planning district in various programming areas. The intern will also take part in a Food Safety research project and program evaluation, and experience the research base that supports all VCE programming.