SECU Public Fellows: Charlotte students driving community impact

The SECU Public Fellows Internship Program connects UNC Charlotte students with nonprofits that shape the Charlotte region. Supported by the SECU Foundation and administered by the University Career Center, the program offers hands-on roles that allow students to serve, learn and lead. This summer, six students found purpose and perspective through internships that brought them closer to the communities they hope to uplift.

meet niners who turned their internships into impact

Beyond the internship: A passion for nonprofit work

Senior Ryleigh Knox, a communication studies major, spent her summer as a communications and marketing intern with SHARE Charlotte, an experience that strengthened her belief in nonprofits as engines for community change. She said organizations like SHARE Charlotte “make the world go round” because they prioritize impact over profit, and she enjoyed helping connect the public to missions that “can change the world in ways that for-profit organizations can’t.”

Knox gained hands-on experience with podcasts, websites and newsletters, and said even in a mostly remote role, in-person events helped her “see her future.” She hopes to launch a nonprofit supporting young women through mentorship and mental health resources and believes the skills she developed through her internship will give her an advantage as she plans for life after graduation.

Experience brings clarity: How a internship redefined a path

Families Forward Charlotte, founded by Carrie Christian to address the city’s challenges with upward mobility, gave senior Jiya Heath a chance to explore her strengths through a summer internship. She supported educational programming, donor relations and operations, but redesigning donor materials sparked an unexpected interest in content creation. “I really enjoy designing and making content. I want all of the content that I put out to be memorable,” Heath said. She also earned her emPATH certification during the internship.

The experience helped Heath refine her academic path, leading her to double major in business analytics and marketing with a clearer focus on programming roles. She is already applying her new skills on campus as the social media chair for the National Council of Negro Women.

Broadening skills through outreach and advocacy

More than 2,000 Mecklenburg County residents are experiencing homelessness, and rising housing costs continue to strain families. Through her internship with Charlotte Family Housing, D’ascia Muir supported marketing, volunteer coordination and summer programming while learning how stable housing and financial-literacy support change lives for the single mothers the organization primarily serves. “I like being able to see the actual outcomes of what I do and how other people can benefit from it,” she said.

Muir, a communication studies major, also built connections across the nonprofit, stepping into outreach, advocacy and community engagement work that broadened her interests. “I’ve gotten to work in so many different areas of the organization,” she said. “I thought I’d stick mostly to marketing and community engagement, but I got to volunteer, do outreach and reach out to council members and Charlotte influencers. I didn’t know I’d like that part, but it was so exciting.”

An internship of many colors

Amelia Baskin, a marketing analytics and operations and supply chain management student, spent her summer as an operations intern with Teach For America, where a major rebrand created opportunities far beyond what she expected. She redesigned email templates, built slide decks, joined hiring meetings and learned to manage a wide workload after her supervisor broke the summer into clear phases. “A huge part of my role was getting these new graduate students hired into different schools,” Baskin said, noting that the structure and trust she was given helped her build confidence in her ability to handle complex projects.

She credits the organization’s collaborative culture for the range of responsibilities she gained, noting how staff members routinely step in to help one another. By the end of the summer, Baskin wasn’t just an operations or marketing intern — she was both, plus a communicator and event coordinator — experience she is already connecting back to her coursework and future career path.

Passion, preserved: Turning a love of history into real experience

Gracelyn Hinson, a senior majoring in history, spent her summer as an intern preserving the long history of the Sisters of Mercy. From rehousing decades-old audio tapes to cataloging artwork and correspondence, she has learned the technical skills behind archival work — and discovered how powerful it can be. “Every object is a reflection of a particular experience of a different time, of a particular individual,” Hinson said. “For me, it’s an opportunity to almost travel back to a different place.”

Her work included preparing open-reel tapes from the 1950s and ’60s for digitization, cataloging artifacts in PastPerfect and managing new inventory as it arrived. The internship strengthened her confidence and shaped her future goals, which include completing an honors thesis on Zelda Fitzgerald and curating immersive exhibits. Each step, she said, brings her closer to not just preserving history — but telling its stories herself.

Turning lived experience into transferable skills

Sara Guerra Burgos moved to the United States at 19 and found her footing in Charlotte through International House, a nonprofit dedicated to helping immigrants thrive. Through her internship with the organization, she supported marketing, fundraising and community outreach while drawing on her own immigration experience to connect with clients. “I feel like I belong here, and I can also share my background with them and be heard,” Burgos said.

Her work strengthened her intercultural communication skills and deepened her commitment to serving others. Burgos, an international and global studies major, collaborated closely with Mica Gadhia, communications and events manager, who praised her initiative and willingness to learn. “Sara is very willing to try new things with our organization,” Gadhia said. The internship affirmed Burgos’ passion for community impact.

Read more about these six Niners and their SECU internships on the Career Center blog.

Written by: Gabby Rivera and Jennifer Howe