GGUSD Students Gain Real World Skills through Summer Internship Program

• Monday, July 18, 2022

Last week, Garden Grove Unified School District celebrated nearly 80 high school juniors who successfully completed a six-week summer internship program at 37 companies and non-profit organizations across the county. The Internship Culmination Celebration was held at Don Wash Auditorium on July 15.

This is the tenth year that the district has run a summer internship program and the fifth year collaborating with Youth Career Connections, a work-based learning initiative of United Way Orange County.

Eligible students must be rising seniors who have taken CTE pathway course work and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Students spend the first and last weeks of the program in the classroom learning about professional communication, interviews, resume writing, and careers of interest.  Following a competitive interview process, students are placed with an employer and spend four weeks interning, gaining real-world skills in a variety of industries.

“These internships provide an incredibly eye-opening experience for students who are learning skills and gaining knowledge that cannot be provided in a classroom or from a textbook,” said GGUSD Board of Education Vice President Lan Nguyen who attended the celebration. “We are grateful for the support of the Orange County United Way and the corporate partners who took our students in to mentor them and give them a deeper understanding of their industries.”

During the celebration which included a networking breakfast, students provided internship testimonials and received certificates and scholarships provided by Bank of America for completing the internship. GGUSD Director of 7-12 Instruction Dr. Stephanie Heflin, CTE Director Myra Clarke, United Way President & CEO Susan B. Parks, and Executive Director Sergio Contreras all spoke about the importance and power of the program. 

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