Hi everyone! I'm Katie, and I'm working at the Office of Economic and Workforce Development for the next six weeks, along with four other DukeEngage students.
Within the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), most of us DukeEngage students are working with James Dickens, the program coordinator for the Durham YouthWork Internship Program. This program offers Durham youth aged 14-21 the opportunity to gain work experience and develop skills during the summer, in various businesses around the City of Durham. Last summer, Durham youth were placed in government offices, with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, at N.C. Central and Duke University, with the design consulting firm Kimley-Horn and Associates, and at other offices. When we arrived at OEWD, hundreds of applications had already been reviewed, and 90 students had been selected for the 2014 program. During our first week, our job was to input data on these 90 students into spread sheets, m help match up the students with an internship site, and get paperwork ready for the students to begin working come mid June. As we get closer to the start date of the YouthWork Internship Program, we will be getting a chance to work with the Durham youth through pre-employment training sessions, as well as acting as supervisors at the placement sites. We are all eager to meet the Durham students and watch them have meaningful internship experiences this summer as we do the same!
For our first Saturday activity in Durham as a DukeEngage group, we visited the Durham History Hub/Museum of Durham History. I was surprised to learn that this is the first history museum in Durham, and while it was a city goal to open one since the 1930s, it was not opened until last October! Even though the History Hub was small, it was packed with information. The museum includes a rotating exhibit on the ABCs of Durham. The exhibit is currently on B for "Brick" and highlighted the prominence of brick in Durham's tobacco buildings. In the late 1800s, brick grew in popularity alongside the growth of Durham's tobacco industry, as tobacco entrepreneurs built eight new tobacco factories and seven sales warehouses between 1873 and 1885. Having already learned about the history of Durham's tobacco industry at our pre-orientation meetings, it was interesting to see another exhibit connecting back to what we had previously discussed. The Durham History Hub was a great way to gain more insight into Durham's past before our group session on Durham: Past, Present, and Future with Mayor Bell this week!
Within the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD), most of us DukeEngage students are working with James Dickens, the program coordinator for the Durham YouthWork Internship Program. This program offers Durham youth aged 14-21 the opportunity to gain work experience and develop skills during the summer, in various businesses around the City of Durham. Last summer, Durham youth were placed in government offices, with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, at N.C. Central and Duke University, with the design consulting firm Kimley-Horn and Associates, and at other offices. When we arrived at OEWD, hundreds of applications had already been reviewed, and 90 students had been selected for the 2014 program. During our first week, our job was to input data on these 90 students into spread sheets, m help match up the students with an internship site, and get paperwork ready for the students to begin working come mid June. As we get closer to the start date of the YouthWork Internship Program, we will be getting a chance to work with the Durham youth through pre-employment training sessions, as well as acting as supervisors at the placement sites. We are all eager to meet the Durham students and watch them have meaningful internship experiences this summer as we do the same!
For our first Saturday activity in Durham as a DukeEngage group, we visited the Durham History Hub/Museum of Durham History. I was surprised to learn that this is the first history museum in Durham, and while it was a city goal to open one since the 1930s, it was not opened until last October! Even though the History Hub was small, it was packed with information. The museum includes a rotating exhibit on the ABCs of Durham. The exhibit is currently on B for "Brick" and highlighted the prominence of brick in Durham's tobacco buildings. In the late 1800s, brick grew in popularity alongside the growth of Durham's tobacco industry, as tobacco entrepreneurs built eight new tobacco factories and seven sales warehouses between 1873 and 1885. Having already learned about the history of Durham's tobacco industry at our pre-orientation meetings, it was interesting to see another exhibit connecting back to what we had previously discussed. The Durham History Hub was a great way to gain more insight into Durham's past before our group session on Durham: Past, Present, and Future with Mayor Bell this week!