Students Experience Both Rewards and Challenges During NCCHE Internships

 

It was the new minor in Genocide and Holocaust studies that drove Ryan Gephart to choose to intern at the National Catholic Center for Holocaust Education (NCCHE).

“Since coming to Seton Hill genocide studies and Holocaust education is something that I've become not only very interested in but passionate about. I've always been interested in history and politics as evident by my majors, but a few of the classes I've had here such as World War II with Mr. Radulovich, Faith, Religion & Society with Dr. Klapak, and Hebrew Scriptures with Dr. Leap really hightened my interest on the subject,” said Gephart.

The World War II class further sparked Gephart’s interests. “In that class, I learned that it wasn't just the wars that made the time period interesting and at times tragic but it was what happened away from the battlefield as well. This is the first class in which I really experienced a real degree of depth on the Holocaust and many of the events surrounding it,” said Gephart.

Communications graduate Andrea Perkins also had a prior interest in studying the Holocaust.

“I do love history. And that period of history is really one of my favorite time periods (other than early American history). I did almost try to minor in History. So this internship really did combine my love of history and communication, which was awesome. I had to do a lot of outside learning so that I could do my job effectively,” said Perkins.

Perkins said that the NCCHE internship stretched her skills, making her become not only a communication professional, but a historian, journalist, and art tour docent.

Fall 2008 intern Chelsea Oliver found that one of her current classes directly influenced her work at the NCCHE.

“While I was doing the internship at the Center, I was taking Writing for the Internet  and I feel that I everyday I would go to class and learn something and then have to apply that exact material to something I'd have to do at the Center that day,” said Oliver.

“I would like to say I applied everything I learned in my Communication classes to this internship. I had to design literature and advertisements, I had to use InDesign to put them together (I didn't have to, but I found it was easier.) I also had to do a lot of event planning and coordinating between other departments which are all things that we learned as Communication majors--how to put on and carry out an event and deal with the things that go your way and the things that don't. I had to write documents like flyers, press releases and news stories, so I really utilized everything I know how to do as a Communication professional,” said Perkins.

Oliver found meeting the people at events one of the most rewarding aspects. As for the challenging aspects of the internship, Oliver said one of those included “figuring out what to write to the audience of the center’s website,” to keep their interest in the NCCHE’s activities.

Some interns found parts of the internship surprising. Gephart was surprised at how fast the production process for the events was, an aspect which he felt prepared him for the real world.

“We began planning our first event on day one and a few days later we presented it. At the start everything can be a little overwhelming but after a few weeks it begins to slow down and you kind of get into a rhythm that you'll keep throughout the semester. What also surprised me is that when it rains, it pours in regards to the amount of work you do. There will be a week that you might only have one or two relatively minor things to work on then the following week you'll have several high-profile projects due around the same time. This was a good experience though because it prepares you for what work is like out there,” said Gephart.

Gephart and Mary Clark were the first two students to minor in the Genocide and Holocaust studies program, which also offers a certificate for graduate students. In May 2009, Clark will become the first student to graduate with the minor.

“This was an opportunity for me to practically apply the skills I have developed the past three years in both my communications area of study as well as the genocide minor simultaneously,” said Clark.

Clark, a soon-to-be Communications graduate, said that she feels her time at the NCCHE has prepared her for her future career.

“I was able to work independently to design, problem solve, coordinate, supervise and evaluate during my time here with the center. Currently job hunting, I am seeing more and more often the need for such experience when applying for positions. Employers appreciate hands-on backgrounds and I feel extremely well prepared due to the independent (but with appropriate amounts of guidance) goals and tasks laid out for me when starting this experience,” said Clark.

Of his overall experience at the NCCHE, Gephart said “I developed and honed other skills which I hadn't used that much or didn't even know I had in the process so it was a genuine learning experience instead of just reciprocating years of what I already know. In all I had a very good learning experience at the NCCHE and I'm glad I chose it as an internship.”