High School Internships
The Van Cortlandt Park Alliance offers three paid internship programs for High School Students: Spring Garden Internship, Garden 2 Market Internship and Urban Eco-Teens.
Spring Garden Internship
TEENS GET PAID TO HELP OUR GARDEN GROW!
Spring Garden Interns get our garden off to a great start at the beginning of each growing season. Each year, interns brainstorm what will grow in our site, spend time researching different growing techniques to create a planting chart, sift and turn our compost bins, and practice their leadership skills showing volunteers how to plant seedlings.
This internship is perfect for high school students looking to be outside, create something that will feed the community, and learn hands on how an urban farm runs.
The 2024 Spring Garden Internship will run from April to June afterschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The Spring Garden Internship application period has closed for 2024.
The Spring Garden Internship for 2024 is funded by the USDA’s Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (UAIP) Competitive Grants Program.
Garden 2 Market Internship
When we understand where our food comes from, and where it goes, we can make better decisions about what we buy and eat! This 8 week internship is for anyone interested in our food system and covers topics from growing to selling and eating.
During their time in the program, interns work in our garden learning about horticulture, composting, and the social and community aspects of a garden. They spend time exploring food justice issues and learning about the business of running a weekly farm stand: learning everything from ordering and pricing to stocking the table and completing a sale. They gain communication skills and become advocates for healthy eating in their community. The internship includes many chances to taste and cook new foods and recipes- because no internship about food is complete without eating!
Tuition free, 3 credit college course through SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF), EST 135 Introduction to Climate Justice, offered to qualified interns. The course will be asynchronous and details can be found here.
Continuing in 2024, a Crew Leader position will be filled. This college-aged individual will assist in all aspects of the internship: providing direct instruction to interns, maintaining records and metrics, and helping with general prep and planning for each week.
Garden 2 Market 2024 Interns: Application has closed.
Acknowledgments for Garden 2 Market
Support for the 2024 program year provided by:
Con Edison
Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Justice Small Grant Program
Horace Mann School
New Yankee Stadium Community Benefits Fund
NYC Green Fund administered by City Parks Foundation
SMPS Family Fund
Dr. Robert C. & Tina Sohn Foundation
SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry
The Harris & Frances Block Foundation
Van Cortlandt Track Club
Special Thanks To:
Amalgamated Housing Corporation
Friendly Fridge BX
GrowNYC
New York Restoration Project
With deep thanks to NYC Parks for their partnership.
Urban Ecology Teen Internship
Celebrating over 10 years of hard work, friendships and environmental education!
How has Urban Eco-Teens impacted your life?
It greatly impacted my life! I met so many great people and had experiences that honed important skills. I did not pursue a nature-based career but I would definitely do it over again. UET taught me how to cultivate and appreciate this earth. That is something every human being can benefit from. -Kaleem ’14
Fell in love with VCP, made great friends, and became more aware of my impact on the environment – Karen ’14, ’15, ’17
I learned that it’s important to socialize and make connections with people with similar interest. That by building up a little bit of courage and talking to others, we can create a great community.- Andrew ’21
About
Founded in 2012, Urban Ecology Teen Internship (Urban Eco-Teens) is a summer paid internship for high school students that prepares a new generation of students for college, stewardship, and careers in the environmental fields.
All interns work, in the park, alongside horticulturists and natural areas restoration staff from Van Cortlandt Park. They also complete labs, go on nature-focused field trips, and explore green career opportunities with natural resource professionals.
Tuition free, 3 credit college course through SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF), EST 135 Introduction to Climate Justice, offered to qualified interns. The course will be asynchronous and details can be found here.
Returning interns develop and present a special project; and, each year, two college-aged students develop leadership skills by working as program supervisors (Crew Leaders).
UET Summer 2024 Interns: Application has closed.
Acknowledgements for Urban Eco-Teens
2024 Leadership support provided by:
Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Education Local Grants Program
The Pinkerton Foundation
Additional vital support in 2024 provided by:
Con Edison
Horace Mann School
The Edward F. & Sheri G. Leonard Fund
Laura J. Niles Foundation
New Yankee Stadium Community Benefits Fund
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
NYC Green Fund administered by City Parks Foundation
Shandler Family Fund
SMPS Family Fund
SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry
Van Cortlandt Track Club
With deepest thanks to NYC Parks for their partnership.
Returning Intern Projects
2020: Returning Urban Eco-Teens helped to create a new Teens Teaching Teens Video Series for VCPA’s Invasive Species Project: Video & Field Lab.
2021: Urban Eco-Teen returning interns worked to track, monitor and map Japanese Knotweed, a non-indigenous plant species that grows in dense stands around the Park. Pictured to the right is one of the maps they created.
2022: Urban Eco-Teen returning interns assisted VCPA Staff in collecting data on 30 sites spread across the Northwest Forest of Van Cortlandt Park, focusing their efforts on the Asian jumping worm. Check out this video of their final presentation on their research project.
2023: Urban Eco-Teen returning interns worked on creating informational videos about Van Cortlandt Park. The returning interns conducted their own research, created scripts, filmed, and helped develop short, informational videos on the history of the VCP railroad, water chestnut, the UET internship, the invasive plant Japanese Knotweed, vernal pools in VCP and an intro video.
