Abigail Dekam interned for the City of Morgantown.
Seven current and former students are gaining valuable experience while serving local communities, thanks to the WVU College of Creative Arts and Media’s (CCAM) Internship Alliance.
Through partnerships with the Boy Scouts of America, Tamarack Foundation for the Arts, Touchstone Center for Crafts, the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra and the City of Morgantown, CCAM provides paid internships, allowing students throughout the college to begin their professional careers early.
Kenneth Farmer, a May 2024 graphic design graduate, and Paige Burger, a senior dual major in graphic design and marketing, landed internships at the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) Summit Bechtel Reserve in Glen Jean, West Virginia. The Scouting, training and adventure center is the home of the BSA’s National Scout Jamboree and hosts camps throughout the summer. It is also one of four High Adventure Bases, providing outdoor experiences to both scout and non-scout families.
“I've had some great opportunities to work on some cool projects within the scope of graphic design, as well as some in photography and videography - some business development side of things too,” Farmer said. “It truly has been a great summer so far, and I've learned a lot about working with people and scouts.”
Burger recently completed designs for banners that will hang in the Summit Bechtel Reserve dining hall and is exploring an opportunity to continue working for the organization in a part-time remote role.
“I am having an amazing experience at the Summit,” Burger said. "I absolutely love the property, the people and the projects I am working on. Everyone is enjoying my creations as well – my boss said they ‘love my vision.’”
In Charleston, West Virginia, Elizabeth Sikora, a senior graphic design student, was hired by the Tamarack Foundation for the Arts to help raise awareness of the organization’s mission to equip West Virginia artists with the skills and opportunities needed to grow the state's creative economy.
“The internship is going very well! I have been creating social media graphics and I’m beginning designs for a new newsletter they will be releasing later this year,” Sikora said.
Back in Morgantown, Isaac Ridgely, a senior in the Music Industry program, and Abigail Dekam, a sophomore flute performance major, have been interning with the City of Morgantown to help develop the Ruby Concert Series. The planning of these free Friday night concerts is managed by Morgantown’s Director of Arts and Cultural Development Vincent Kitch, who partners with the WVU School of Music’s Josh Swiger, a teaching assistant professor in the Music Business and Industry Program.
“The beauty of this program with the City of Morgantown, is it allows the interns to work with and experience a real-world event and be part of the decision-making process,” said Swiger. “Being that this is what many of these students want to do for a career, it gives them the experience they need for post-graduation success.”
Greta Hulterstrum interned at the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra.
Greta Hulterstrum, a junior majoring in both Flute Performance and Arts Management, interned with the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra in West Virginia. As part of the Orchestra’s operations and education team, she helped with logistics and scheduling for the 4th of July Tour, and managed hospitality needs for guest artists and conductors during the concerts.
In Farmington, Pennsylvania, Zachary Morphew is participating in his second year at the Touchstone Center for Crafts. After graduating from the Art and Design program in May 2024, he reentered the immersive, five-month internship to gain experience in arts administration.
Touchstone is a three-season school that provides retreats for emerging adult artists with on-site living, studios and opportunities to learn and collaborate with other creatives. The center also provides workshops for teens interested in learning a specific craft.
“My favorite experiences at Touchstone have all involved the other interns and the community that is naturally built when people with similar sensibilities are made to live in the woods together. We embark on projects and are given the space to learn in the studios provided by Touchstone,” Morphew said. “In the last month I have learned how to juggle, how to forge, how to make a desk, and most impressively how to hula-hoop, which I’ve always had trouble doing until now. Touchstone’s very structure is set up for its interns to learn valuable skills about management and for its interns to create freely.”
Any College of Creative Arts and Media student can apply for an Internship Alliance position. The College nominates a group of applications for the internships, and the organizations make the final hiring decisions. Applications for Summer 2025 are due in February. For more information and to apply, visit creativeartsandmedia.wvu.edu/internship-alliance.