Posted on December 18, 2010

Johns Hopkins Unveils Internship Program to Help Baltimore Nonprofits

Johns Hopkins University has announced the launch of a program that will pay undergraduates to work at Baltimore nonprofits and government agencies over the summer.

Funded with a $1.25 million gift from an anonymous donor, the Johns Hopkins Community Impact Internships program will underwrite the salaries and living costs for at least twenty-five students in its first year and fifty undergraduates each year thereafter. Freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are eligible for the program, which will pay each intern up to $5,000 while providing local agencies struggling in lean financial times with much-needed help and students with real-world work experience.

To be managed by the university's Center for Social Concern, the program will include a week-long orientation that includes speakers from major Baltimore nonprofits and will end with a two-hour evaluation session. During their internship, students will work thirty hours a week in venues to be determined, based on their interests, and will gather for weekly reflection sessions. It is anticipated that internships will be created at Baltimore-based agencies that have long-standing relationships with the center.

"Students really want to get to know Baltimore but have few opportunities to do summer service-oriented initiatives, feed themselves and pay rent at the same time," said Bill Tiefenwerth, director of the Center for Social Concern, which completed a successful pilot program this summer for eight paid interns overseen by AmeriCorps VISTA. "It's a double gift. Obviously it's a gift to students who want to work for Baltimore nonprofits, and I know that our partner agencies will be happy to use the talent of Johns Hopkins students to help advance their missions."