I had the honor to attend the St. Charles Community District Employer Appreciation Banquet on May 4 at St. Charles East High School. The invitation recognized the Kane County Chronicle for recently hosting Eva Hartigan, a senior at St. Charles North High School, for an internship.
It was amazing to see all of the employers in the area that open up their offices, restaurants and other assorted places of business – including a cockpit at Fly America flight school, the ballpark for the Kane County Cougars and a morgue in the case of the Kane County Coroner’s Office. It goes to show that Kane County employers care about the next generation and are willing to foster a good work ethic.
Jason Pearson, superintendent for St. Charles School District 303, spoke during the meeting about what internships provide to students. He mentioned seven skills, as identified in the book “The Global Achievement Gap” by Tony Wagner, that an internship provides: critical thinking, agility, collaboration, initiative, oral and written communication, accessing and analyzing information and curiosity.
I can say that during my time at the Chronicle, I’ve definitely enhanced those seven qualities for myself, so I can imagine what it was like for Eva. I noticed the quality of her work improve, and I watched how tenacious she was in writing her primary feature article – check it out here: shawurl.com/39ag. She did everything possible to tell the story in the best manner.
I know that if she does pursue a career in journalism she will be great at it.
Which brings me to my next point. I’ve been receiving a number of applications for summer internships. After attending the banquet at St. Charles, I’m convinced that I should lend a hand and help foster the seven skills students will need to survive in the workforce.
If you’re interested in interning at the Kane County Chronicle, email me at zvanvuren@shawmedia.com or editorial@kcchronicle.com.
Zachary Van Vuren is weeklies editor for the Kane County Chronicle, Elburn Herald, Sugar Grove Herald, Kendall County Record and Suburban Life Media. Contact him at zvanvuren@shawmedia.com or 630-845-5368.