Greenwich High School Seniors Complete Internship With Stamford's SoundWaters

GREENWICH, CT — Four seniors from Greenwich High School made waves this spring as interns at SoundWaters, the region’s leading organization for hands-on climate science and environmental education.

Andrew Torok-Hillyard, Oliver Jankovich-Besan, Ava Marcus and Lauren Rutkoske spent five weeks immersed in the day-to-day operations at SoundWaters Coastal Education Center at Cove Island Park in Stamford.

Instead of attending traditional classes in the final stretch of their high school careers, they chose to step outside the classroom and straight into Long Island Sound.

These Greenwich students were among a select group of high school interns from several area high schools, who gained hands-on experience in environmental science.

Working alongside professional SoundWaters educators, the interns played a vital role in delivering science programs to more than 2,000 regional students, ranging from preschoolers to middle schoolers.

Their days were spent leading hands-on experiments in the classroom and lab settings and conducting fieldwork aboard boats on Holly Pond.

"Teaching kids about the environment gave me a whole new perspective on science," said Marcus in a news release, who is starting at Northeastern University in the fall. "It was exciting to take what I’ve learned and use it to spark curiosity in younger students."

The SoundWaters High School Internship Program is more than just work experience, it’s a launching pad for personal growth.

"Our interns are at the heart of our mission,” said SoundWaters Director of Education Christina Genz in a news release. "They lead with curiosity, teach with passion and walk away with real skills and purpose. At SoundWaters, we believe that when students discover the sound, they embrace the world and this group of interns truly embodied that spirit."