Anasia Wattie had everything in place to graduate from Old Dominion University, except for one essential missing piece for her degree — an internship.
She planned to go home to Chester for an internship, but that opportunity fell through. And she needed documentation of an internship to walk at the spring commencement.
Fortunately for Wattie, the Monarch Internship and Co-op Office was there to help. The on-campus office, with a mission to empower students with access to transformative internship opportunities, marked its one-year anniversary on July 1.
Since opening, more than 1,200 students have reached out to the office, said Barbara Blake, the department’s executive director. ODU has 24,000 students.
Wattie, a McNair Scholar majoring in human services and criminal justice, was the first student to receive assistance thanks to recent grant funding.
Wattie secured a 10-week summer internship at a counseling group in downtown Norfolk, but her lease was up at the end of May. She said the internship office helped her secure on-campus housing, a meal plan and parking for the summer.
“They handled everything and were very helpful from start to finish,” Wattie said. “I’m forever grateful. …I was not aware of my resources.”
Blake said the office has seen a tremendous outpouring of support from faculty, regional, state and national employers and organizations during its first year. Equally, Blake said students have been engaged, eager to learn about the value of internships and the work-based learning experience pipeline.
The support and guidance is needed now more than ever, Blake said, as the pandemic affected the latest cohort of students ages 18 to 24. And many internship programs have reached out as they get their footing back post-pandemic.
“Our office is at the right place at the right time for a few different types of reasons,” she said.
The Monarch Internship office received a $5 million grant from the Mellon Foundation, which supports internships for specific humanities majors. It also received $200,000 in grant funding from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia to help eliminate financial barriers, such as transportation, appropriate attire and expensive housing costs, to ensure every student could participate in an internship regardless of financial background, Blake said.
When the office opened up applications for financial help from the SCHEV grant in May, it had an overwhelming response within the first 48 hours, Blake said. The application link closed within a few days.
Awards dispersed to date range from about $150 for a uniform expense to $2,310 for housing support. The funds can also help with pre-internship requirements such as creating a portfolio, background checks and drug testing, she said.
“This support enables students to focus on their professional growth and future success,” Blake said.
Alvin Spruill, a mechanical engineering student from Fredericksburg, is entering his junior year at ODU this fall.
After applying for more than 50 internships, Spruill was delighted to be accepted into BMW’s program in Spartanburg, South Carolina. He is in the throes of a 12-week summer internship and is relishing the experience.
He referred to the people at the Monarch Internship and Co-op office as his heroes. The office helped Spruill, who is autistic and the first in his family to go to college, with interview techniques and application completion and helped him secure housing at the University of South Carolina Upstate to align with his internship.
“They were paramount in my success in getting an internship,” he said.
The office is fully geared to help solve the “brain drain” in Hampton Roads and improve the region’s labor market, Blake said.
“That’s what we’re all about and that’s what we’re trying to do,” she said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but it’s very exciting and fulfilling work.”
Sandra J. Pennecke, 757-652-5836, sandra.pennecke@pilotonline.com
