SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) —Now that school is out, many college students are spending their summers as interns. It’s a way to gain experience while also figuring out what they want to do in the future.
A Sioux Falls organization is doing what it can to help connect those interns and give them tools they need to succeed.
Ethen Lincoln is an intern at the City of Sioux Falls’ engineering department.
“So far this summer, I’ve just been doing some guardrail inventory and retaining walls and then got a couple projects managing out on 41st Street,” intern Ethen Lincoln said.
To help integrate interns like Lincoln into the local business scene, the Sioux Falls Development Foundation started a group especially for them.
“Intern Sioux Falls is a program designed specifically for Sioux Falls interns to be able to connect with others in the community, kind of learn how to get involved, and then be able to meet other people and hopefully want to stay here after graduation,” Talent Recruitment Coordinator, Riley Johnson, said.
Today is the kickoff event for this season’s interns. It includes a welcome lunch and a networking time with the Young Professionals Network.
“One of our big initiatives that we try to do is drive membership within our college-level and intern-level students. So with that, we offer any college or intern student a free membership for a year so that they can get involved,” YPN Manager with Greater Sioux Falls Chamber of Commerce, Jaci Pieters, said.
The opportunity will give the interns a glimpse of what their futures could look like, and help them connect with other people in the same shoes.
“Growing, as, like, you know, a collective group, you know, getting the network out there. And then just as the summer progresses, you know, learning what each person is up to,” Lincoln said.
“What we would like to see is that interns find friends and companionship that really grow as they continue to stay here, and hopefully they enjoy working with their internship as well. And after graduation, they’ll find that they love Sioux Falls. They love their friends here and they love their job. So they’ll continue to stay here and grow the workforce that way,” Johnson said.
The next event will be at Startup Sioux Falls on June 24.
