Karen Snir is a junior majoring in public relations and minoring in Spanish. Karen says she views this internship is a great step forward. We agree. There’s nothing like learning by doing, and that’s what we offer college interns- a chance to apply what they learn in the classroom.

So far, Karen has helped out with promoting some events for one of our Lakeland non-profit clients, and she has increased her knowledge of press release writing. She’s a no-nonsense hard worker who comes in each day and gives us her best effort.

Originally from Re’ut, Israel, Hebrew is Karen’s first language. She also is fluent in English, and is conversational in French and Spanish. She loves to apply her worldly knowledge to her PR work.

Although she grew up in a small town, Karen always has wanted to see the world. Her family relocated to Washington D.C. when she was 13, and she attended a public school in Maryland for a year. From that point, she dreamed of returning to the U.S. to earn a college degree.

Karen isn’t just a student; she’s also a teacher. She teaches Hebrew at Temple Emanuel in Lakeland in her spare time, and she belongs to Kappa Delta Sorority, in which she takes part in a number of philanthropic activities.

When she isn’t studying, teaching or volunteering, Karen loves to travel. She visits different states during each of her school breaks, and she has visited more than a dozen countries.

“I love learning about other cultures,” she says. “I am hopeful that my education and experience will give me an advantage when the time comes for me to seek full-time employment.”

After college, Karen says she hopes to combine her love of language, culture and public relations to find a job in the international relations field. For now, she is focused on graduating from Florida Southern while having gained as much real-world experience during the process as possible.

Danielle, a senior at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee majoring in public relations, actually is splitting her internship between our Lakeland public relations firm and the Downtown Lakeland Partnership.

After returning from a trip with Lee University’s Communications Department to Germany and Austria, Danielle found the perfect place to gain PR experience in her hometown of Lakeland, she said. She began her internship the following Monday.

“I’m really excited about working with an agency and the Downtown Lakeland Partnership; this way I can get a lot of diverse experience and I’m still close to home,” said Danielle. “I’m already writing blog posts and working with social media, and I’ve only been here for a few days.”

Internships offer knowledge and experience that classrooms can’t. By exposing those pursuing careers in the public relations field to real-world situations and experiences, students can learn by doing, not solely by reading about it in a textbook. An internship is a great way of developing a student’s skills in the art of public relations.

I’m happy to have Danielle here for the summer. When I learned that Julie Townsend at the Downtown Lakeland Partnership also could use some help, we decided we could divide Danielle’s time to also give her some experience working with a non-profit.

While attending Lee University, Danielle has gained experience in event planning through her involvement with the Student Leadership Council. She also is a member of Lee University’s Public Relations Student Society of America chapter.

“I’m always seeking opportunities to learn and Lee University has given me those opportunities, in and outside of the classroom,” Danielle said. “I know Lorrie is no exception and will definitely give me real world PR experience unlike any other that I’ve had before and I’m excited to learn more about what public relations entails.”

After graduating, Danielle plans to handle public relations for a non-profit organization and eventually start her own PR agency.

We are excited to make Danielle a part of the team here, and will expose her to a wide range of PR activities so she leaves us with the proper knowledge she needs to pursue her goals with confidence.

We’re also excited to have two interns this summer. That’s a first for us. So in addition to being able to provide them with the type of on-the-job training they desire, we’re getting some much-needed assistance. We welcome that.

October graduated May 6 and started her internship with us the following Monday.

“I walked into this situation thinking that I would spend the majority of my summer filing and running errands, and I was thankfully mistaken,” said October. “I am grateful for this amazing opportunity Lorrie has given me, and I hope to make her proud in my future accomplishments.”

I believe that you can learn the concepts in the classroom, but we all know there is nothing like on-the-job-training to make someone better at their craft. We’re happy to have her on board for the summer, and plan to expose her to a variety of PR activities so she leaves us feeling confident that she has the skills necessary to pursue a public relations career.

Before attending Southeastern University, October worked in the pediatric and orthodontic dentistry fields.

“When I first decided to go to school for dental assisting I was working in retail and my hours weren’t steady,” said October. “I decided to find a stable career that I showed interest in, and would enjoy every day.”

Lorrie Walker Communications does a lot of work for Internet marketing firms that specialize in working with dentistry and orthodontic practices. Because of that, we work extensively with dentists and orthodontists to write Web content, articles and press releases.

When I found out that October had experience in the pediatric and orthodontic dentistry, I felt like I’d hit the lottery. As a writer with this experience, I think she’s going to help us as much as we will help her.

Intern Opportunities:
- Researching and writing news releases and articles for search engine optimization purposes.
- Using social media to meet clients’ public relations goals.
- Working on campaigns for private companies and local non-profit organizations.

Qualifications:
- Candidate should have strong interviewing and writing skills and must know how to use the Associated Press Stylebook.
- Candidate must be able to work on deadline and must have the discipline to work alone and as part of a team.

Equipment Requirements:
- Candidate must have his/her own laptop computer and Internet access.

Other Information:
Part-time; flexible hours. This is primarily a telecommuting position.

How to Apply:
Applicants should e-mail a resume and three writing samples, including articles and press releases to:
Lorrie Delk Walker, president. E-mail: lorrie@lorriewalker.com, Phone 863-614-0555.
Deadline to apply is Oct. 29.

Intern Responsibilities:
Research and write basic news releases and articles for search engine optimization purposes. Work on media campaigns as opportunities become available.

Intern Qualifications:
Candidate should have strong interviewing and writing skills and must know how to use the Associated Press Stylebook. Candidate must be able to work on deadline and must have the discipline to work alone and as part of a team.

Other Information:
Part-time; flexible hours. This is primarily a telecommuting position that requires weekly meetings with supervisor. This is a paid internship.

How to Apply:
Applicants should e-mail a resume and three writing samples of articles and press releases to:

Lorrie Delk Walker, president. E-mail: lorrie@lorriewalker.com, Phone 863-614-0555.

Deadline to apply for summer internship is May 8.

It seems that each time I check Twitter, Heather has another great opportunity posted. My advice to college public relations students is to check out Heather’s Web site and start following her on Twitter. She’s easy to find: heatherhuhman. Also, you can search for #PRIntern on Twitter and find her tweets. The opportunities she promotes are from throughout the country.

It seems that many college students have difficulty finding PR, journalism and marketing internships locally. So recently I posted a list of Lakeland, Florida public relations, journalism and marketing internship opportunities.

If your company or non-profit organization has an internship opportunity available, email me and we’ll get it posted for you: lorrie@lorriewalker.com.

2009 Internship Opportunities

SPCA of Polk County, Inc.

Type of internship: public relations and/or marketing

Description of Internship Opportunity : non-profit agency seeking interns interested in gaining experience in press release writing, media relations, web site design/maintenance, marketing, design, grassroots outreach and customer service

Education/experience requirements: experience in writing, content management systems, adobe design software preferred; outgoing personalities, team players, multi-taskers and self-motivated individuals a must

Hours: part time

Salary: unpaid

Contact: Rachel Bulman, Public Relations Director, rachel@lovemyspca.com, 863/646-7722 ext. 105

Florida Dance Theatre

Type of internship: public relations and/or marketing

Description of Internship Opportunity: Under the guidance of FDT staff, write press releases and disseminate information regarding the company’s performances and activities. Promote FDT to the Polk County community. Help coordinate events, write grants, and perform general record keeping, as needed.

Education/Experience requirements: Public Relations or Marketing student. Strong writing and interpersonal skills required. Must be an independent worker and self-starter. Must be able to take specific direction and be open to instruction.

Hours: Flexible hours, preferably a minimum of 12 – 15 per week.

Salary: Unpaid

Contact: Carol Krajacic-Erkes Artistic & Founding Director, 802-0399, Carol@floridadancetheatre.org

Polk County Government-PGTV

Type of internship: journalism, public relations and marketing opportunities

Description of Internship Opportunity : Develop/implement PR/marketing exposure and/or write articles/press releases for government television channel, using free resources

Education/experience requirements: College, entry level is fine

Hours: Flexible, will work with student schedule/availability

Salary: Unpaid. No budget available, but great for students needing school credit

Contact: Joan Davies, PGTV Programming Director, 863-534-5997, joandavies@polk-county.net

Pain Solutions Magazine (A new national magazine being published out of Lakeland)

Description of Internship Opportunity: Journalism, public relations and marketing opportunities.

Education/experience requirements: If they want to do writing for the Website I would like some writing samples. Otherwise, I would simply prefer a junior or senior or graduated student.

Hours: part-time

Salary: unpaid

Contact: Contact Diana Young-Stewart at 863/688-8181 or dystewart@painsolutionsmagazine.com .

Downtown Lakeland Partnership, Inc.

Type of internship: public relations and marketing opportunities available

Description of Internship Opportunity: The DLP will provide an opportunity to explore a wide range of PR and marketing experiences. We are a membership-based marketing cooperative whose purpose is to market Downtown Lakeland to residents and visitors. Our members include banks, owner operated retail stores, nonprofit organizations and more. We write press releases, create marketing materials and develop marketing plans, manage social media, organize and execute events, develop cross marketing opportunities, work with businesses and organizations on their marketing needs, and market ourselves to new and existing businesses on the benefits of membership in the DLP. As an intern you will create marketing materials, meet with business owners to determine their marketing needs, conduct surveys, write press releases, execute cross marketing opportunities with Downtown businesses and events, practice event management, have hands on public relations through events and DLP meetings and work with our board of directors, currently chaired by Kevin Jones, President of MidFlorida Federal Credit Union. This unique experience will expose you to dozens of businesses and nonprofit organizations and their decision makers.

Education/experience requirements: Knowledge of basic computer programs, such as word and excel a must. A work knowledge of graphics program s such as Photoshop and Indesign ( or Quark) preferable. Must have transportation, have an outgoing personality, and good communication skills.

Hours: part-time and very flexible.

Salary: There may be an end-of-the-internship stipend, not yet determined by the board.

Contact: Julie Townsend, Executive Director. PO Box 3499, Lakeland FL 33802; (863) 513-3669

Polk Arts Alliance, Inc.

Type of internship: public relations

Description of Internship Opportunity : to prepare pr materials for our annual race for the arts (3/21) and to do our press releases. With limited staff, even though I am well experienced, it’s a time issue. Our Race Chairman is Commissioner Bob English, so it’s good marketing as well. Could also use someone who is an experienced blogger and hooked into social networks to create a web presence.

Education/experience requirements: need to see writing samples and no first year students. Must be computer literate.

Hours: Flexible

Salary: Unpaid

Contact: Mischelle Anderson, Executive Director. PO Box 727, Bartow, FL 33815-0727; (863) 804-0494; director@polkartsalliance.org

Genie Publishing

Type of internship: marketing

Description of Internship Opportunity : An opportunity with flexible hours and full independence to someone who is skilled at computer marketing and/or Web site design.

Education/experience requirements: Must be computer skilled for Web site and computer marketing.

Hours: part-time

Salary: $8/hr or by project

Contact: gay@geniepub.com