Eagle Eye’s Residential Summer Internship is a unique experience for college students to live and work outdoors for six weeks, practice sustainable living, and connect with themselves, others, and nature in a beautiful forest environment. The internship offers a dual experience to develop hands-on land management and outdoor skills and gain outdoor education and mentoring experience with youth and teens ages 8-18.
Below is a recent reflection from 2019 Residential Intern Madi McCarthy of UMass Amherst. Madi is a junior majoring in Psychology and Education.
Working with Eagle Eye this past summer was one of the most impactful experiences I have been lucky enough to have had. I gained so many life skills, underwent personal growth, and made life-long connections with very special people. This summer helped me realize that I want to pursue a career in education, especially in an urban community. Working with the youth will have a lasting impact on me, because I saw how much nature can affect youth. I was also able to hold the Champion role and lead a youth program. That was one of the most intimidating things I have done, but also such a great learning experience!
When the youth were not on site, we worked to maintain the site. [Site Manager] Scott taught me so many skills that I never had exposure to before. I leaned how to operate various tools and create a lot, including helping to finish a cabin! Doing trail stewardship daily helped me learn the skills behind land management, give back, and appreciate the land more overall.
During the internship, I was able to establish healthy routines and a healthy lifestyle. Cooking and eating good food, meditating daily, and having group check-ins and feedback with everyone during the week helped me to realize that I can apply these routines to my daily life in college. Since the internship, I have been back at UMass and the routines that I established this summer, such as daily meditation, yoga, and journaling, have all stuck with me more than ever. It has had a big impact on my well-being.
The deadline to apply for the Residential Summer Internship is Friday, April 17th, 2020, with applications reviewed on a rolling basis. Read the full internship description here and contact us to learn more!
