Faces of the Future: Meet our summer interns
"Government work" often gets stereotyped into a nebulous bucket defined by politics. In reality, local government is a collection of people with wide backgrounds, education and experience working in an equally wide variety of professions to maintain programs and services for our community.
Grand County employs nurses, engineers, accountants, social workers and scientists – to name a few. Every summer, we offer high school and college students an opportunity to work alongside our staff to explore different career paths while earning a paycheck. If a department doesn't list an internship position, we often create one based on a student's desire for knowledge and hands-on experience in a particular field.
This summer, we had 11 interns, ranging from high school sophomores to graduate students to a Colorado National Guard service member. Their presentations to the BOCC made us smile – and made us proud. We have some well-spoken, ambitious young citizens here in Grand County! In the words of the wise Dr. Seuss: "You're off to great places, today is your day! Your mountain is waiting...So get on your way!" Thank you for your hard work, energy and commitment this summer!
Carter Chamberlin
Middle Park High School, Class of 2025
Internship: Geographic Information Systems
Carter drove 2,500 miles and mapped 254 culverts this summer as part of our Geographic Information Systems (GIS) team. His work identifying and locating culverts will help Road and Bridge assess the culvert's condition and minimize road damage from failing culverts. Read Carter's presentation.
Future plans: Carter will be a sophomore at Colorado Mesa University, where he is majoring in Business with a minor in Geographic Information Systems and plays lacrosse.
Divina Dominguez
West Grand High School, Class of 2026
Internship: CSU Extension / Middle Park Fair and Rodeo
Working alongside our Extension and Fair staff, Divina created marketing materials and social media content to promote the Middle Park Fair and Rodeo and organized the inaugural "4-H Hall of Fame." Read Divina's presentation.
Future plans: Divina will be attending Colorado State University this fall to study Political Science.
Aida Hester
Middle Park High School, Class of 2023
Internship: CSU Extension / Middle Park 4-H
Aida organized several events and experiences for 4-H participants, including a visit to the University of Wyoming's meat lab and CSU's spur campus in Denver, and led several workshops. Read Aida's presentation.
Future plans: Aida will be returning to the University of Wyoming this fall, where she's double-majoring in Elementary Education and Agricultural Business.
Brandon Johnson
West Grand High School, Class of 2029
Internship: Fairgrounds
His summer Fairgrounds internship was – as Brandon put it – his "first ever real job." Brandon worked alongside his sisters preparing the Fairgrounds for the Middle Park Fair and Rodeo, and credits the job with teaching him responsibility and integrity. Read Brandon's presentation.
Future Plans: After high school, Brandon plans to pursue a degree in architecture and possibly music.
Julianna Johnson
Internship: Fairgrounds
Julianna returned to work alongside her siblings helping clean and prepare the Kremmling Fairgrounds for the Middle Park Fair and Rodeo. In addition to learning hands-on skills, she appreciated the opportunity to give back to the community. Read her presentation.
Future plans: Julianna is a senior at Liberty University and is majoring in Elementary Education. In addition to finishing her degree, she's student teaching at West Grand Elementary this year.
Lydia Johnson
West Grand High School, Class of 2026
Internship: Fairgrounds
Like her sister, Lydia rejoined the Fairgrounds crew for a second summer to serve her home community. Her favorite task this year was learning how to drive the tractor and change out the sweeps. Read Lydia's presentation.
Future plans: Lydia will be attending Western Colorado University this fall, pursuing a Biomedical Engineering degree.
Joseline Lopez
West Grand High School, Class of 2025
Internship: Coroner's Office
Throughout the summer, Joseline went on calls, learned how to drive the trucks, and participated in case work and other projects with the Coroner's team. The "life lessons" she learned this summer include: Tomorrow is not guaranteed; Be bold enough to advocate for yourself and others; Growth happens the moment you step out of your comfort zone. Read Joseline's presentation.
Future plans: Joseline will be a sophomore at Colorado Mesa University, where she's majoring in Criminal Justice with a minor in Forensic Anthropology.
MaKena Ledin
Middle Park High School, Class of 2023
Internship: Grand County Public Health
MaKena spent her summer with our Reproductive Health team. In addition to responsibilities at the Granby clinic, she attended several community outreach events and meetings with community partners. With aspirations of a medical career, she gained awareness about access to reproductive care in rural communities. Read MaKena's presentation.
Future plans: MaKena will be a senior at the University of Colorado, and plans to take her Medical College Admission Tet (MCAT) this fall.
Owen Richardson
Dartmouth College, Class of 2024
Colorado State University, Class of 2026
Internship: Water Resources
Owen graduated from Mead High School in Weld County, and has since earned a Bachelor's degree in Earth Sciences from Dartmouth College and a Master of Science in Geosciences from Colorado State University. He chose to work with our Water Resources team this summer to gain experience applying river science to "real watershed management," and deepen his knowledge about the Upper Colorado River. Throughout the summer Owen evaluated existing sediment monitoring procedures and recommended ways to fill data gaps. He also used R and Python to build graphics that made existing results easier to interpret. Read Owen's presentation.
Future plans: Owen is working on a Ph.D. in Earth and Planetary Sciences at Dartmouth College, and hopes to continue working with local, state or federal governments.
Logan Shepherd
United States Marine Corps, Colorado National Guard
Internship: Geographic Information Systems
As part of his plan for transitioning out of military service, Logan interned with us this summer to learn different aspects of GIS and how to work more efficiently in ArcGIS, the software we use to turn geographic data into interactive maps. Read Logan's presentation.
Future plans: After earning a Bachelor's degree in Ecosystem Science, Logan hopes to work with wildlife or natural resources.
Baleigh Smith
Middle Park High School, Class of 2026
Internship: Clerk and Recorder's Office
After hearing positive things about the Office from family members, Baleigh joined the Clerk and Recorder's team during her senior year in high school and stayed through the summer. She helped our Elections Lead with the Primary Election and also with Motor Vehicles. She credits the experience with helping strengthen her communications and time management skills Read Baleigh's presentation.
Future plans: Baleigh plans to take a gap year to travel before enrolling in Colorado Mountain College for Business / Finance.
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