Colorado State University’s Extension Internship Program: Opportunities to Build Bridges

Abstract

Public universities in the U.S. are striving to improve upon their engagement portfolios through connecting various units in transdisciplinary capacities and better leveraging statewide assets. Students, and specifically internship programs, can provide a great mechanism to facilitate these bridge-building efforts. This article provides a description of Colorado State University's Extension Internship program, its history and evolution, its impacts on different constituents (including students, extension, and faculty/staff), and a critical reflection on where the program currently stands and where it is going. We hope that this is useful to other institutions considering building or growing their own programs.

Keywords

• internship
• land-grant universities
• Extension
• community engagement