The time has come to meet the 10 high school interns participating in Insitu’s summer internship program.
This year, Insitu pushed towards encouraging students to apply for the internship that would either be entering the workforce, attending a trade school or pursuing two-year degree rather than attending a four-year university after high school.
Each student in the internship comes from a different school in the Gorge, another first for the internship program which usually has at least 4-5 students from the same school. Seven of the interns are recent high school graduates while three are incoming high school seniors.
For the next eight weeks, these interns will be working in the different departments at Insitu to learn from employee’s as well as the college interns, based on interests they expressed during the application process in the spring. Toward the end of July, they will also participate in a community service project with Insitu’s college interns at Rhine Village, which is still recovering from the fire back in February.
Let’s meet the interns.
Eddie Casillas-Navarro is a recent graduate of Hood River Valley High School and will be working in the Visitor Relations Department at Insitu. Casillas’ interest in Insitu as a company is what pushed him to apply for the internship.
“I am looking forward to meeting new people and learning anything I can from this experience,” said Casillas.
Casillas hopes to gain skills and knowledge that will serve him well down the road from this internship experience as well.
Next is Cascadia Technical Academy graduate David Craig. He will be working in the Electrical Engineering Department this summer. Craig said he was interested in pursuing the internship because he believes he can further his previous experiences and education in electrical engineering.
“I look forward to learning more about electrical systems and gaining more work experiences,” said Craig.
Only two girls will be participating in this year’s internship program, Marena Decker and Kati O’Brien.
Decker will be a senior at Horizon Christian School in the coming school year but will be spending the next eight weeks with the Standards and Evaluation Department at Insitu. Decker applied for the internship because of her interest in a career in aviation.
“This is a great way to gain exposure to the field,” said Decker.
Decker hopes to gain further insights into the field of aviation, as well as meet new people and learn from the working environment.
O’Brien is a graduate of The Dalles High School and will be spending time in the Facilities Department. She views the internship as an opportunity to further her career options.
I hope to gain more knowledge about mechanics and well as experience what it’s like to work for a larger company,” said O’Brien.
A recent graduate of Stevenson High School, Jacob Gimmey will be working in the Operation Curriculum Department. Like many of the interns, Gimmey sees this internship as an opportunity to further his future.
“I hope to gain knowledge and experience in this field and this company and apply it to my collegiate experiences,” said Gimmey.
Sam McCullough is the first intern to come from Wishram in the 10 years of Insitu summer internships. McCullough will be a senior at Wishram High School this coming school year. He will be working in the Warehouse Department at Insitu. McCullough pursued the internship opportunity in the hope that he could increase his knowledge in the world of industrial design and engineering.
“I hope to gain experience in learning how Insitu works as well as how industrial design and engineering has evolved in aerospace,” McCullough said.
Many of the interns also expressed how the internship will help them pay for school in the future. The interns can earn up to $3,200 by the end of the program.
Forrest Putnam is a graduate of Trout Lake High School and hopes that this internship is his “foot in the door” to the aerospace industry.
“I am mostly looking forward to just plain working for a company that I have heard so much about,” said Putnam.
Putnam will also be working in the Facilities Department and hopes to gain at the very least a good work experience from the internship.
From the Lyle High School graduating class of 2018 comes Joe Rodriguez. Rodriguez had heard about the internship and said it sounded like fun.
“I am looking forward to learning and doing things I have never done before,” said Rodriguez.
He is hoping he will have lots of fun with his fellow interns in the Facilities Department.
Goldendale High School graduate Jordan Woolery will be spending time in the Logistics and Product Support Department over the course of the next eight weeks. Woolery became interested in the internship opportunity as a way to gain some work experience that will add to his resume.
“I am most interested in working with new people and not being so closed off. I hope this opportunity allows me to try new things and learn new skills that I can apply to a career,” said Woolery.
Finally, White Salmon’s own Jordan Trout, an incoming Columbia High School senior, will be spending his summer internship in the Machine Shop at Insitu. Trout, who has spent time in CHS Machine shop, hopes this internship will help give him a leg up in his career interest of working in an industrial machine shop.
“I am hoping to gain more skills in the shop and learn about different machines and tool types as well as the finer points of the career,” said Trout.
Commented