A Charlotte HBCU among many in national program creating equity with paid internships
A national nonprofit hoping to create more equity with paid internships for students of color has partnered with several historically Black colleges and universities — including the one in Charlotte — to make that happen.
The Local Initiative Support Corporation launched its new National HBCU Development program in November and is working with eight HBCUs around the country, including Johnson C. Smith University.
Over the next two years the nonprofit will place more than 40 students attending HBCUs in paid internships at local LISC offices or community development financial institutions. the New York-based group announced.
Eryn Glover, a sophomore at JSCU, has seen the challenges peers face in getting paid internships. The lack of paid internships can create a barrier of entry for some students, she said.
“Having an internship who pays you is doubly important,” said Glover, among the first eight students placed in LISC’s program. “You get the information and connections you need, and you’re getting paid on top of that.”
Among the reasons why LISC started the development program is to tackle the disparities students of color face with trying to land paid internships. Often “white students significantly (are) more likely to gain paid versus unpaid positions than Black students,” per a release from LISC. They face disparities even when entering the workplace, says Denise Scott, who heads LISC.
“This is an opportunity to marry a diverse pool of potential candidates with the needs of community,” Scott said. “It can help to increase diverse leadership and staff at community development organizations.”
A 2019 study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers showed white students are more likely to paid interns than unpaid interns, while Black students are more likely to be unpaid interns. Hispanic-American students are more likely to never have an internship than an unpaid or paid internship, according to the study.
Black students accounted for 6.6% of the 4,000 graduating students in the survey, but only accounted for 6% of paid internships. Instead, the study said they were over-represented in unpaid internships accounting for 7.3%.
The new, LISC internship pays $25 an hour, and up to $15,000 for the academic year, Scott said.
“It’s about uplifting students who have been historically disconnected from these kind of opportunities,” Scott said.
In addition to JCSU, Howard University, Morehouse College, Edward Waters University, LeMoyne-Owen College, Lincoln University, Simmons College and Virginia State University also are schools partnering with LISC.
The internship can help introduce students to the community development field, where people learn and develop skills to effect change in their local community, Scott said.
“This also allows us to invest in young professionals,” Scott said.
Community work
Colleen Mulcahy, a spokeswoman with LISC, said one of the gaps the nonprofit saw was . students of color often were only being hired for unpaid internships.
This could limit students’ access to work experience, Mulcahy said. Students may forego unpaid internships, in fields they desire, in lieu ofpart-time jobs instead, she said.
“It carves out a whole bunch of people who can’t afford not to work,” Mulcahy said.
The internship market is competitive, Scott said. Landing a great paid internships would lead to better paying jobs after graduating, which enables the grad to pay college loans faster.
HBCU graduates face higher student debt making it increasingly more difficult to build wealth after college, the Charlotte Observer previously reported.
The Center for Responsible Lending released a report this year that showed economic gaps and underfunding at HBCU’s push students to take on a disproportionate amount of debt. This keeps graduates from adding to their net worth later in life, the report said.
“Talent is everywhere but opportunity is not,” Scott said. “This program is a part of our work to address some of the systemic racial barriers that keep young people from gaining the experience and connections they need.”
Glover has worked with LISC to support fundraising, social media and community outreach, and working with neighborhood nonprofits. But the most exciting work has been the volunteer work she does in her community, she said.
Glover joined the LISC Charlotte team in delivering laptops to affordable housing communities. She said being on the ground and seeing the reception from people reminds her why she loves the work she does.
“That experience and seeing the true impact of what we do here at LISC Charlotte was great,” Glover said.
This story was originally published December 29, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
