SoundWaters Welcomes Darien High School Student Interns

Stamford, CT – SoundWaters, the Stamford-based environmental education organization, has chosen six Darien High School senior for its spring internship program. Sarah Hadlow, Grace Harmon, Isabelle Johnson, Thomas Kyritz, Celia Rogers and Alice Chidley will be working for five weeks at the organization’s Coastal Education Center at Cove Island Park. The Darien contingent is part of a larger group of spring interns from several high schools in Connecticut and New York who, instead of attending classes for the final weeks of their high school careers, work in internships to experience a real-world business environment. Almost every member of the DHS senior class is working as an intern, filing weekly reports and a final summary for review by their DHS faculty mentor.

At SoundWaters, the DHS interns are working every day alongside and under the guidance of SoundWaters’ educators, teaching the science of Long Island Sound to elementary to middle school-aged students from schools across the region. They are helping students in a classroom and lab setting, but also on the beach and in boats on Holly Pond where the students do their field work. Over the five week period of their internship, they will work with over 1900 students from 13 elementary schools.

“SoundWaters is an amazing organization and I am lucky to have this internship. I get to work outside around the water with kids and help them learn about Long Island Sound and how to protect the environment,” said Grace Harmon, who will be attending Colorado College in the fall. “I enjoy helping the students, but I’m also learning a lot about Long Island Sound myself and how a non-profit works,” Harmon added.

“The SoundWaters High School Internship Program is a model for professional development and environmental stewardship. Students develop their job and leadership skills on a daily basis as they perform scientific experiments, aquarium maintenance and assist with our STEM programs, reaching over 100 students each day. The SoundWaters intern program is a powerful learning experience,” said Alisha Milardo, SoundWaters Vice President of Education.

About SoundWaters

SoundWaters, founded in 1989, is the premier environmental education organization focused on the protection of Long Island Sound and its watershed. Annually, SoundWaters hosts shipboard and land-based programs for 28,000 children, including 9,000 from underserved communities. SoundWaters just recently merged with Stamford-based Young Mariners Foundation, which will strengthen SoundWaters’ ability to provide Long Island Sound sailing-based skill and educational development programs to underserved youth throughout the Long Island Sound region. SoundWaters works in partnership with individuals, schools, communities, businesses, civic organizations, and other environmental and educational organizations to develop experiences that foster a sense of responsibility for the environment and encourage actions that ensure the sustainable future of the Long Island Sound ecosystem. For more information, please visit www.soundwaters.org.

Photo: Darien High School senior interns taking a break between teaching classes at SoundWaters at Cove Island Park in Stamford: (l-r) Tommy Kyritz, Isabelle Johnson, Sarah Hadlow, Alice Chidley, Celia Rogers, Grace Harmon.

Photo Credit: Mike Bagley, SoundWaters