Every summer YouthRoots hosts summer interns to work through curriculum review and other projects. This gives participants an additional leadership opportunity and helps us keep youth voice at the forefront of the work that we’re doing. Due to COVID-19, the summer internship moved virtual this year, and 15 participants and alumni have come together to work with staff on creating our new 100% virtual program launching in the fall. Here’s what our interns had to say about the summer internship! 

Why did you decide to intern with YouthRoots this summer and what are you hoping to get out of it? 

• As a member of the 2018-2019 JeffCo YouthBoard, YouthRoots profoundly impacted my life. The YouthRoots curriculum not only taught me about leadership, philanthropy, fundraising, and community needs, but also gave me the toolkit I needed to change the world. I decided to intern this summer because of the YouthRoots magic; I wanted to be a part of an organization that empowers, inspires, and educates the next generation of leaders. YouthRoots taught me about the importance of translating my experiences in programs into real change. –Aimee
• I loved being a part of YouthRoots, and I wanted to continue making the same type of impact after the program ended for the year. This internship has made me expand my thinking process and has allowed me to understand how much work goes into planning and executing activities for this amazing organization. I’m hoping that after it’s over, I will have gained different ways to help out my community, whether it be through brainstorming new or interesting fundraising activities, thinking of motivators for students to participate, or something more. Using this info, I could implement it at school, in my community, and later on in my life. –Vv

What has been your favorite part of the virtual internship so far? 

• I have really enjoyed the part of the internship that asks you to evaluate your personal beliefs and how they can be incorporated into the world into a positive way. This seems to be a theme in each week’s questions. It’s allowed me to do a lot of self reflection and spurred me to take action on the issues that I find most important. –Kira
• My favorite part of the internship so far has been to see the growth of our ideas into something that is becoming more and more real. I hope we get more interaction with the other people in the program, just so we can see people and their thoughts. –Vikas
• My favorite part of this internship so far has been the extent of which I feel as if my voice is being heard. It is my favorite thing to see a program like this one embrace what the youth of today want to see our future look like. –Sawyer

What’s your favorite thing about YouthRoots overall?

• My favorite part of YouthRoots is the people who work for the organization. Meeting new people and fostering new connections is so cool. –Fareed
• My favorite thing is this program allows high school students to make real change in their own communities. I think it is important for students to have input on the issues that their communities currently face and be able to take action to effectively solve these issues or work towards a solution. –Jade
• YouthRoots empowers! Empowers students, empowers interns, empowers staff, empowers movement. –Maria
• As I stated many times before, I believe the best overall quality of YouthRoots is its empowerment and ability to further the overall confidence, voice, and intrinsic capabilities of today’s youth who enter the program. I believe this program presents a pedestal on which today’s youth can preach their ideas in a safe and comfortable environment in which many peers and students of close but different ages, races, and ZIP Codes are able to communicate and speak about changing the world in a positive light. –Sawyer
• I absolutely love that YouthRoots is youth- led. It’s an amazing way for the youth voice to be heard and for us to make an impact on our community to a greater extent. I feel like when there’s more adult involvement, it may make the environment a little stricter and more uncomfortable, so we may not be as willing to share what we think, which may limit our ideas and impact. –Vv