Student intern Program Averages 58 Participants Every Summer

WASHINGTON –The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has been selected by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) to receive the Outstanding HACU Public Partner Award in recognition of the Department’s efforts to bring Hispanics into its workforce.  The award will be presented at HACU’s 25^th Annual Conference this October in San Antonio, Texas.

“This award demonstrates VA’s commitment to a diverse workforce,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “These young people are given a unique opportunity to learn about the Department of Veterans Affairs and Federal Government through the HACU internships.  Many will return to VA as fulltime employees.”

The program’s objective is to provide professional work experience that will enable Hispanic students to make more informed career choices and supplements their academic study with practical experience. VA’s Veterans Health Administration alone has averaged 58 interns every summer for the last five years.

“Veterans Affairs has been an active and long-term partner in HACU’s National Internship Program,” said HACU President and CEO Antonio Flores.  “By its active participation, VA has increased its opportunities to hire well-qualified Latino graduates, thereby diversifying its workforce. At the same time, the internship has raised awareness of young Hispanics about employment opportunities in public service generally, and the VA in particular.”

Nancy Carrillo, a 21-year-old psychology major at the University of Texas at El Paso, is interning at VA’s Readjustment Counseling Service in Washington, D.C.  “I’m very interested in counseling as a career, especially counseling Veterans,” she said.  “I appreciate the sacrifice they’ve made for our country. Counseling and helping them reintegrate into civilian life is my way of thanking them.”

Ivan Jimenez, 23, is majoring in architecture and environmental design at the University of Houston.  This summer he’s interning in the Facilities Management Office at the VA Medical Center in New Orleans.  “This is fun, and I’m learning a lot,” Jimenez said.  “Right now I’m helping them design the new fitness center here.  I get to go to meetings with the architects and consultants.”

The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities is a national association of nonprofit higher education institutions. Established in 1986, the association represents more than 350 colleges and universities in the United States and Puerto Rico. The HACU National Internship Program has become the Nation’s largest Hispanic college internship program. HACU represents Hispanic-Serving Institutions where Hispanic Americans constitute as least 25 percent of the total enrollment at either the undergraduate or graduate level.