Mayor’s Intern Fellows Program celebrates more than a decade of action

The Dallas Mayor’s Intern Fellows Program ended with nearly 400 public high school students gaining paid experience in the industries of their choice throughout Dallas. Friday’s luncheon at the Hyatt Regency celebrated the students who traded in their summer for time spent investing in their future as well as the businesses who graciously took students under their wings.

“I’m reminded that, for many of these students, this summer position was their first job ever,” said Mayor Mike Rawlings, “I’m also reminded that many of these students will be first-generation college students, and these opportunities have served as a gateway to careers they never imagined and possibilities they might have believed, at one time, were out of their reach.”

During the ceremony, several intern fellows shared how meaningful their experiences were and the lessons they learned at their internships.

“I’ve learned so much about contracting, business,” said Isaiah Valencia, an intern fellow at DFW International Airport. “The whole process as to what happens behind the scenes.”

The celebration ended with a group photo of all of the intern fellows together on stage. From up there, their future couldn’t look brighter.

See the CBS 11 coverage of the Mayor’s Intern Fellows Program here: https://youtu.be/W8nel2aBSwg

See the Class of 2018 Mayor’s Intern Fellow Reflection video here: https://youtu.be/HI2MtWX8h6A

Modeled after the prestigious White House Fellows program, the Mayor’s Intern Fellows Program is an eight-week, paid summer internship program providing Dallas public high school students with job opportunities in industries and areas where they have expressed interest. It is a competitive process beginning in October and ending with an ultra-competitive Job Fair in April where interns interview with more than 238 businesses and non-profits for an eight-week paid summer internship.