Students Spend Summer Learning, Working in Chicago
Six Alma College students participated in the off-campus Chicago Center for Urban Life and Culture program this summer.
Beth Hubbard, Megan Crawford, Kristin Senter, Sarah Lindesmith, Okwara Uzoh and Diana Walton spent eight weeks earning credit by
learning about the city of Chicago while participating in professional
internships.
Hubbard, a senior from Oxford, interned at Community Television
Network, a nonprofit that provides film classes for high school
students.
“I am assisting the instructors with the class and learning about the
film production process,” said Hubbard. “The theatre in Chicago is
amazing. The selection of great plays is unbelievable.”
Crawford, a senior from Fenton, interned as a journalist for StreetWise, a nonprofit weekly newspaper in Chicago dedicated to getting impoverished individuals out of poverty.
Senter, a senior from Grand Ledge, interned at the League of Chicago
Theatres, a nonprofit that coordinates marketing for more than 190
theatres in the Chicago area.
In addition to working as interns four days a week, the students
participated in a Chicago Center seminar called “Chicago Communities
and Cultures.” They visited different neighborhoods and met with local
leaders.
“My Chicago experience has been very eye-opening; it’s so easy to
forget that there is an interesting, diverse world outside of Alma’s
academic bubble,” said Crawford. “Yet, this summer, I’ve met Jesse
Jackson, watched Barack Obama speak and attended so many amazing
cultural events. I’ve had the chance to interact with minority sectors
that don’t have a large representation in Alma.”
The students participated in events that make up the city as a whole and not just the usual tourist traps, said Senter.
“It is amazing how different the city becomes when you stop being a tourist and become a resident,” said Senter.
Students live in Hyde Park in furnished apartments with typically two
to three other students. All utilities and a grocery charge account are
provided as part of the program.
The Chicago Center program operates during the academic semesters as
well as the eight-week Summer Session these Alma students participated
in.
For more information, contact Chicago Center Campus Liaison Ginna
Holmes at the Academic and Career Planning Office. Students also can
learn more about the Chicago Center on the Web.
Posted: Fri, August 1st, 2008 at 9:08AM
