• Build partnerships between UVM and rural Vermont communities 

• Develop and support high-quality internship opportunities for UVM students 

• Introduce UVM students to vibrant rural economies 

• Support rural economic development in Vermont

• Support rural VT employers with internship program development and management resources 

• Pay interns a livable wage 

• Coordinate and support housing for interns at local colleges and universities 

• Facilitate community-based reflection and professional development for interns 

This summer, a cohort of 10 UVM summer interns will be working with organizations that support the Brattleboro community, including resettled New Americans, in partnership with the Brattleboro Development Credit Corp and the School for International Training (SIT). 

The UVM Leahy Institute for Rural Partnerships will fund a stipend of $4,000 per intern and provide housing at the SIT campus in Brattleboro, Vermont.

These are 20-hour-per-week internships with the following components:

• 15 hours per week: Primary internship site (there will be 10 different opportunities)
• 2 hours per week: Collaborative work with other cohort members to support the New Vermonter Education Program’s ESL instruction and program activities, providing additional hands-on experience working with refugees in an educational setting
• 3 hours per week: Weekly intern cohort workshops focused on professional development, networking, and reflection, including a community orientation and a final sharing event in August 2026

Questions about the cohort? Contact UVM Internship Coordinator kristen.andrews@uvm.edu 

Kristen Andrews, UVM Internship Outreach and Engagement Coordinator at the Career Center and the Leahy Institute, will manage the program. Employers will be supported throughout the process as they develop intern job descriptions, post the positions, choose candidates, host their interns, and invoice for wage reimbursement.   

In summer 2025, the Leahy Institute, with support from the Ford Foundation, sent interns to help strengthen communities in two regions of Vermont.

Students in both locations had free housing for the 10-week internships. 

Northeast Kingdom:  Picking up from the success of our 2024 cohort, students returned to the Northeast Kingdom. The interns once again had free housing at Sterling College in Craftsbury Common, and worked at internships throughout the region.

White River Valley:  Students in this cohort had free housing at Vermont State University in Randolph, and worked in a variety of internships in the White River Valley.