August 8, 2013

NJ Revilla-Garcia

College students complete national summer internships with HACU

Washington, D.C. – Federal leaders from the U.S. Veterans Administration (VA) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today will join The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) to bid farewell to its summer 2013 cohort of interns at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C.

Earlier this summer, more than two hundred college students were selected for summer paid positions under the HACU National Internship Program (HNIP).

Keynote speakers of the internship farewell event will be: Principal Under Secretary for Health at the VA Robert L. Jesse, M.D., Ph.D.; and Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service at the USDA Anne Alonzo, M.B.A., J.D..

"The HACU National Internship Program is crucial to workforce development, especially when there’s a persistent gap of Hispanics employed in the federal workforce and corporate America," said HACU President and CEO Antonio R. Flores. "The program has made a positive impact in the career paths of many former interns considering corporate and federal employment. At the same time, the contributions made by these talented students also provide organizations with workplace diversity.”

According to “An Analysis of the 20th year Alumni Survey: HACU National Internship Program,” the most direct influence of the internship program has been in the career tracks of the participating students, with 90 percent reporting “the internship influenced their professional opportunities,” and “led to a better career decision.”

The summer 2013 cohort represents 132 institutions from 25 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Interns attend colleges and universities located in the following: Arizona (3); California (35); Colorado (4); Connecticut; District of Columbia (17) Florida (11); Georgia (2); Illinois (11) Indiana (3); Kentucky; Maryland (10); Massachusetts; Michigan (4); Minnesota (2); Missouri; New Jersey (5); New Mexico (7); New York (14); North Carolina; Ohio (2); Oklahoma; Oregon; Pennsylvania (4); Puerto Rico (50); Texas (41); Virginia (7) and Wisconsin. Click here for a PDF list of student interns and by institution.

The next application deadline is Nov. 15, 2013 for the spring session (Jan. 10 - April 26, 2014). Information is available at http://www.hacu.net/hnip

 About HNIP

The HACU National Internship Program has had more than 10,000 participants since its inception in 1992. The program provides college and graduate students the opportunity to gain professional development opportunities with the federal government and corporations. Students intern at federal and corporate sites for a duration of ten or fifteen weeks and receive a stipend.

 About HACU

The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) represents approximately 450 colleges and universities committed to Hispanic higher education success in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Latin America, and Spain.

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Agencies interested on federal internship partnerships with HACU, can contact: Maria Elena Vivas-House, HACU National Internship Program (HNIP) senior executive director at 202-467-0893.

Companies interested in a corporate internship partnership with HACU, can contact: René A. González, senior executive director of student services, at (210) 692-3805.