Impact Interns is a community building program that represents a partnership among several groups: a company, a high school, 20 high school students and 20 local nonprofit organizations. Impact Interns has the dual benefit of increasing the readiness of high school students for the workforce while also increasing the capacity of local nonprofits. The program aims to benefit underserved students.

How the Program Works

In the fall/early winter the school, students and nonprofits are assessed and recruited by EPI. In the spring, the students attend a 10-week program as part of their high school curriculum that prepares them to be effective interns in a workplace environment. In the summer, the 20 students complete a 120-hour internship at one of the 20 nonprofits and are awarded a stipend of $1,000.

Benefits of the Program for All Partners

For Students: Improved work ethic, summer income, career/college enhancement
"I became more aware of how a workplace functions. My major accomplishment was helping Pretend City's marketing team mail 4,000 invitations and helping find sponsors."
– Student intern at Pretend City Children's Museum in Irvine, California

For Nonprofits: Increased capacity, supplements online skills, creates future employees and supporters
"Our student intern updated our agency's fundraising literature and donor thank you letters. Our donor stewardship has improved as a result of our intern's exceptional work."
– Robin Sinclair, Executive Director, Boys Hope Girls Hope, Orange County, California

For Companies: Fulfills community relations strategies, creates PR opportunities, builds future workforce
"We commend your team on developing a workplace training skills program which successfully prepared high school students to work at a nonprofit agency. We are pleased that the participating nonprofit agencies benefited tremendously by having a productive paid intern."
- Bob Haskell, President, Pacific Life Foundation

Cost & Return on Investment (ROI)

The cost of each Impact Intern program is $95,000 and provides 5,400 total program hours. It has the following ROI:

• 2,400 hours impacting nonprofits: as interns add capacity and productivity for the nonprofits
• 3,000 hours impacting students: as students learn workplace skills in the classroom and at the nonprofits

The Role of EPI

EPI created and piloted the program in 2008 and 2009 in Orange County, California, with funding from the Pacific Life Foundation. The EPI team provides the following for each Impact Intern program:

• Assesses and recruits the schools, students and nonprofits
• Provides the curriculum and works with the teacher on the 10 week in-school program
• Works with the school and the 20 nonprofits throughout the summer internship
• Conducts the pre- and post metrics on objectives and performance
• Provides a post-program assessment
• Liaises with the corporate sponsor throughout the program

Back to Our Work

Print this page