SUMMER 2023 INTERNSHIPS
Instructions for applying here.
Check out the summer interns' Instagram (@public_history_uva) to see how interns spend their summers.
Questions? Email IPH Director Lisa Goff at lg6t@virginia.edu.
Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society (ACHS) - ALL POSITIONS FILLED
Charlottesville, Virginia (and remote)
Three internships
1. Researcher and writer, Pen Park Cemetery Project - ONE OF TWO POSITIONS FILLED
Terms: The Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society (ACHS) is seeking 1-2 graduate or advanced undergraduate students with strong research and writing skills, a background in American history, and familiarity with genealogical research and the local history of Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville. Previous experience with oral history research a plus. Workspace will be provided in our Downtown Charlottesville office, and the intern will have the ability to work remotely if needed. These internships pay $17/hour for graduate students and $15/hour for undergraduates, for 300 hours of work over the summer.
Goals: The ACHS is partnering with the City of Charlottesville to research, locate, and collaborate with the descendants of enslaved individuals who were buried in unmarked graves at the Pen Park cemetery, with the goal of determining the most appropriate ways to commemorate and memorialize this solemn ground. Charlottesville City Council approved a resolution on December 2, 2019, authorizing the use of funds for the archaeological evaluation of possible unmarked graves outside the enclosed family plots at the Gilmer/Craven/Hotopp Cemetery at Pen Park, which date from the late 1700s through the 1800s. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) evaluation of the site shows the presence of 43 unmarked and unrecorded graves outside the walls of the three family plots. The evidence so far suggests that these unmarked graves are those of individuals enslaved on the site of Pen Park. Our summer interns will review existing research and archival sources, conduct new research, complete reports on specific individuals and families, and participate in oral history interviews with members of the descendant community. They will work directly with ACHS staff, contractors, and volunteers, and in close collaboration with others involved in the project, including Jeff Werner, City of Charlottesville Historic Preservation Planner; Shelley Murphy, UVA Enslaved Laborers Project Lead Researcher; Sam Towler, Local Historian and Central Virginia History Researchers member; and Lorenzo Dickerson, Maupintown Media Filmmaker and Local History Storyteller.
Outcomes: With guidance from ACHS staff, the interns will become familiar with cvillepedia.org and will write and edit wiki pages and articles for the Pen Park Cemetery Project. At the end of the internship, the interns will have added page articles to the site, and understand the processes involved with researching and writing for a local history wiki. The interns will have the opportunity to present on their work in a hybrid online/in-person public program hosted by the ACHS during the internship.
About: The ACHS has served the local community for over 80 years, collecting, preserving, and interpreting local history. Today we are embracing technology and digital archives to expand accessibility to historical information. Cvillepedia.org was created by Charlottesville Tomorrow in 2009 and has grown to be a source for community knowledge and history of the people, places, and events in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. The ACHS, in partnership with Charlottesville Tomorrow and the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, is initiating a comprehensive strategic plan for Cvillepedia’s future—to facilitate improvement and expansion through community partnerships, to ensure the site is an equitably accessible archive for local history, and to envision the platform as a community-driven historical resource for and by local citizens that benefits the whole community.
2. Educational Coordinator, Desegregation Oral History-K12 Project - POSITION FILLED
Terms: The Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society (ACHS) is seeking one advanced undergraduate student, preferably in an educational field, with a background in American history, and familiarity with the local history of Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville. Previous experience with oral history research a plus. Workspace will be provided in our downtown Charlottesville office, and the intern will have the ability to work remotely if needed. This internship pays $15/hour for 30 hours of work per week for an 8 week period.
Goals: The ACHS is engaged in a multi-year oral history project to collect, preserve, and share the recollections of individuals, many of them former student athletes, who experienced the desegregation of local public high schools (1954-1974). Video recorded oral history interviews are being made publicly available via our soon-to-be online website: “No Playbook: School Integration During Massive Resistance.” The structure of this internship will be hybrid. Some tasks will allow for remote work, but in-person meetings and participation in the workshops will
be required. The internship will begin with introductions to ACHS staff, volunteers, and contractors working on the oral history project. The intern will learn about the oral history project and become acquainted with the “No Playbook” website. With staff supervision, the intern will layout a work-plan for continued recruiting of educator participants, scheduling meetings and workshops to fulfill the following, and completing the internship with a report on what has been learned and what recommendations are offered. During the internship, the intern will be required to attend, in-person or virtually, weekly check-ins with ACHS staff to monitor progress.
Outcomes: This summer intern will help us engage and recruit local educators, design and plan the summer workshops, and brainstorm some initial ideas for learning resources we can present and discuss with educators and their students the following school year. The workshops will focus on the purpose of the project, the methods and uses of oral histories, the substance of the oral history interviews, the functionality of the website, and the development of inquiry-based learning resources. These workshops will initiate class projects empowering
students to explore and utilize the website, and make recommendations based on their experiences. The end result will be feedback from the educators and students concerning the accessibility, comprehensibility, and utility of the website. The ACHS will then implement further improvements to the site and its resources. Among the additional improvements will be inquiry-based learning resources to link to the site so that other educators and their students can benefit from these efforts.
About: The ACHS has served the local community for over 80 years, collecting, preserving, and interpreting local history. Our mission: History is not the past; it is the story we tell about the past. Every person in Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville has a unique and powerful story to tell. Through collecting, preserving, and interpreting the history of our community, we are committed to informing, inspiring, and bringing together all people, creating opportunities for new relationships and new understandings. Today we are embracing
technology and digital archives to expand accessibility to historical information. “No Playbook” is our current flagship project intended to empower local citizens to tell their own stories and to add to our understanding of a complex past. The next phase of the project involves engaging
with local educators and creating learning resources for K12 schools to help young students understand the historic background of racial divisions in our communities and offer them
examples of young people like themselves who experienced times of strife and change.
Chickahominy Indian Tribe - POSITION FILLED
Charles City, Virginia (remote and occassional in-person)
One internship
Communications and historical documentation
Terms: The Chickahominy Indian Tribe seeks a summer intern to assist with communications and historical documentation. The scope of work will include creating various communication materials to be distributed internally and externally, including but not limited to event and informational flyers, email blasts, social media postings, and others. In addition to communications, the successful intern will assist with creating an educational tool (or tools) that accurately depicts the Tribe’s history and can be distributed to both internal and external individuals and organizations. Such tools may include photos, videos, podcasts, and more. Assistance with data entry in the Tribe’s enrollment software, to include genealogy data, is also requested. The necessary information and training needed to successfully complete the aforementioned activities will be provided by tribal staff and those designated by tribal leadership. Most work can be conducted remotely, however, in-person attendance will be required on occasion to gather information for the creation of the educational tool (or tools). This internship pays $15.00 for 250 hours of work.
Goals: 1. Gather information and create various tribal communications that convey pertinent information in a neat, organized, and concise format.
2. Collect historical and present-day information to create an educational tool (or tools) that can be used internally and externally to convey accurate tribal history and information, in order to foster awareness and knowledge of the Chickahominy Tribe and Indigenous peoples.
3. Enter data into the enrollment system to ensure records are updated and genealogy data is captured. The intern should have excellent written/oral communication skills; be proficient with Microsoft Office Suite and technology; have an interest in history and/or experience with research; work well with tribal staff, citizens, and outside agencies; ability to work independently.
Outcomes: The outcomes of this proposal include streamlining the Tribe’s communications, promoting education and awareness, and ensuring accurate records within the Tribe’s enrollment system.
About: The Chickahominy Indian Tribe is located in Charles City County and consists of ~1,000 citizens, of which ~80% live within 1-hour of the Tribal Center. The Tribe was state recognized in 1983 and later gained recognition from the federal government as a sovereign nation in January 2018.
Finding Virginia’s Freetowns and Griffin Blvd Archives - BOTH POSITIONS FILLED
“Black placemaking in Virginia: Reconstruction-era Black legislators as community builders”
Charlottesville + Buckingham, Cumberland, and Prince Edward counties
Two internships
Historical research, digital mapping, community engagement
Terms: “Black placemaking in Virginia: Reconstruction-era Black legislators as community builders” seeks two interns, advanced undergrads or grad students, to research the property holdings of late 19th-century Black legislators elected across the state during Reconstruction, and plot those properties on an ArcGIS map created for the purpose. Interns must have research, writing, communication, and analytical skills. Experience using ArcGIS digital mapping tools or making StoryMaps is desired. Coursework in African American history, or demonstrated evidence of interest in that history is essential. Photography skills and experience interviewing people are a plus, but not a requirement. Interns will meet at least weekly with a supervisor from the project. Some of the internships require a car or access to one; interns will be reimbursed for mileage. Some remote work is possible. These internships pay $20/hr for grad students and $15/hr for undergrads, for 250-300 hours of work over the summer.
Goals: Interns will comb through public records in the county courthouses of the three counties we’re targeting, identifying sales of land by Black legislators and recording the names of those who purchased it, as well as the boundaries of their tracts. We’ll search (and make a relational database based on) property tax records, deeds, and especially land books from the 1890s and 1910s, which identified landowners by race. We will also meet with community members from Cumberland, Buckingham, and Prince Edward counties to share information and request feedback and guidance.
Outcomes: A number of the legislators we will research, the first Black men to serve in Virginia government, amassed large acreages of land. Many of them sold tracts to formerly enslaved people who then established the farmsteads, churches, and schools that anchored “freetowns”—settlements founded by formerly enslaved Virginians during Reconstruction. Mapping Black legislators’ property holdings is a way of identifying and locating the earliest post-war Black settlements, an under-studied period of Black achievement and self-empowerment that occurred during Reconstruction before the violence and repression of the Jim Crow era intervened. Interns will use the information they find to create an annotated, publicly available ArcGIS map that shows original property holdings by legislators, and the ownership of subdivided tracts once they were sold. Essentially, this will map the very beginnings of post-war Black settlements in central Virginia, and illustrate how land was acquired and then redistributed by Black civic leaders. Interns will also create publicly available StoryMaps about each of the legislators, highlighting their roles as community builders and developers.
About: The project is a collaboration between Griffin Blvd. Archives, a public history initiative that aims to preserve local knowledge and cultural sites with the goal of reimagining rural Black landscapes in central Virginia, and the Finding Virginia’s Freetowns project at UVA, a partnership between faculty and Scholars’ Lab dedicated to identifying and mapping central Virginia “freetowns”—settlements founded by emancipated Blacks during Reconstruction.
Gibbes Museum of Art - POSITION FILLED
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
One internship
Collections and exhibitions
Collections and exhibitions
Terms: The intern will be introduced to the day-to-day operations of a mid-sized art museum. This unique opportunity will be available to an undergraduate rising third- or fourth-year with a particular interest in American art and art history preferred. Background in art history, American studies, or museum studies is required. Curiosity, adaptability, and self-starter qualities are valued. Students who thrive in a cohesive, team-based environment, and who are excited by the possibilities of working closely across departments in a mid-size museum are ideal. Candidates under-represented in the museum field are strongly encouraged to apply. This internship pays $12 an hour for 300 hours of on-site work.
Goals: The intern will assist with the planning, development, and execution of special exhibitions and changes to the permanent collection galleries as well as activities related to collections management. Duties to include: the development of object checklists, creation of installation plans, loan initiation, and communication with artists and lenders. Additionally, assisting with annual collections inventory, cataloging new acquisitions, preparing works for outgoing loan, researching objects, and writing label copy for upcoming exhibitions and the mobile app will be part of the intern’s responsibilities.
Outcomes: Outcomes expected are an overall familiarity with museum collections care, policy and practice; familiarity with exhibitions planning, development and execution; and an understanding of museum values, ethics and goals in a professional team oriented environment that believes art museums serve as spaces for transformational community conversations.
About: Located in the heart of downtown Charleston, South Carolina, the Gibbes Museum of Art is known for its dynamic exhibition programs and its exceptional collection of American art that provides a vibrant introduction to the visual culture of America and the American South from the colonial era to the present. The Museum presents six to eight special exhibitions annually, and organizes over 100 educational programs and events that respond to the region’s unique art history, Charleston's diverse demographics, and its reputation as a top tourist destination in the United States.
Louisa County Historical Society - POSITION FILLED
Louisa, Virginia
One or more internships
Archives digitization
Terms: The Louisa County Historical Society seeks organized, enthusiastic intern/s to staff the society’s new archive digitization program. The focus of the work will be completing image capture and metadata entry as well as processing archive materials and conducting limited research. Applicants should possess strong computer skills and a willingness to learn new programs, including relational database systems; attention to detail; ability to work independently and on a team; and an interest in making historical information more widely accessible. Experience handling archival materials is a plus. All work is in-person and to be completed Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. The exact schedule is flexible depending on qualified candidates' needs. The office is located in the town of Louisa within driving distance of Charlottesville, Richmond, and Fredericksburg. This internship pays $15/hr.
Goals: Interns will work alongside staff and archive volunteers in a collaborative and inclusive environment. This is a great opportunity to work with the historical society staff during the inaugural year of the archive digitization program and to work to make historical records more publicly accessible. This Internship will also provide exposure to the operation and activities of a small historical society.
Outcomes: Supervised by the society’s director, intern/s will staff a digitization station equipped with a DSLR camera, copy stand, and lighting to digitize archival materials in a careful and consistent manner. Interns will complete digital image capture and digital file naming/storage following LCHS protocols; review basic metadata in our collection database; edit and/or add to basic metadata as needed. Limited research may be required to fill in basic metadata fields. Other duties may be assigned.
About: Founded in 1966, the Louisa County Historical Society brings to light, preserves, and shares the history of Louisa County. An Equal Opportunity Employer, our vision is to enlighten the present by illuminating the past in order to inspire the future. You can see examples of our digital projects here.
Morven Summer Institute - BOTH POSITIONS FILLED
Charlottesville, Virginia
Two internships
Research and teaching assistants
Terms: We seek two upper-level undergraduate students with relevant coursework in American History and/or African American Studies to serve as research assistants for the 2022 Morven Summer Institute class, ARH 4500/AAS 4559: Morven’s Enslaved and Descendant Communities (May 23-June 17). The interns will enroll in the course and assist with (1) video documentation and social media posts of class activities, including field trips; (2) the transcription of archival materials, such as handwritten letters, wills, deeds, etc.; and (3) the creation of draft cultural landscape walking tours via app or pamphlet. Experience with social media and graphic design is a plus, but no prior experience or training in digital technology is required. Interns will be supervised by the course instructor, Dr. Scot French, a specialist in digital and public history. Internship start and end dates will be set by the supervisor. This internship pay of $17 per hour for 240 hours over the course of 8-10 weeks (25-30 hours per week).
Goals: Our primary goal for these paired internships are: (1) to document class activities through video and social media and build public awareness/support for ongoing research and site interpretation at Morven; and (2) to build a digital archive of student- and faculty-generated research (scanned documents, transcriptions, bibliographies, etc.) and related presentations/reports for use in ongoing research and curated displays, and (3) to create interpretive tours for the site that can be utilized to tell the complete history of the Morven property to visitors. Interns will have an opportunity to work with 19th century historical records, such as newspaper advertisements, handwritten letters, wills, and deeds.
Outcomes: Interns will contribute to video and social media documentation of the summer class and the development of an accessible/searchable digital repository of student- and faculty-generated materials that will help tell the story of Morven’s enslaved and descendant communities. Interns will gain valuable experience in videography and social media, historical research, and digital humanities tools/methods.
About: The 2,913-acre UVA Foundation-owned property known today as Morven has a complex, multi-layered history spanning thousands of years of human occupation. Located in southwestern Albemarle County, not far from Monticello, the site has attracted new interest from researchers since its acquisition by UVA in 2001. Today, Morven is home to a multi-disciplinary research and teaching initiative known as the Morven Summer Institute. ARCH 4500/AAS 4559 Morven’s Enslaved and Descendant Communities (May 23-June 17) invites students to explore the lives and labors of African Americans at Morven through a combination of lectures, discussions, field trips, and guided research. Led by co-instructors Lenora McQueen and Scot French, students will learn about each of the site’s distinct periods of occupation, from 17th and 18th century Monacan Indian encampments to the British land grant era of the Carter Estate (1730s-1790s), post-Revolutionary Era experiments in small-scale tenant farming and agricultural reform at William Short’s “Indian Camp” (1790s-1810s), and the rise of large-scale plantation slavery under David Higginbotham (1820s-1853) and D.G. Smith (1853-1865). Students will also explore the post-emancipation transition to free labor systems (sharecropping, tenancy, wage labor) and the formation of descendant communities throughout Albemarle County. Students will maintain research blogs, work in small groups to examine/interpret primary sources, report new findings, and produce a multimedia or poster-style project for public presentation at Morven.
Pamunkey Indian Tribe Museum and Cultural Center - POSITION FILLED
King William, Virginia (hybrid options possible)
One internship
Museum intern
Terms: The Pamunkey Indian Museum & Cultural Center seeks an intern to work closely with the Museum Director and Tribal staff on a variety of projects. Undergraduate and graduate students should have at least one year of focused study in history,
anthropology, archeology, museum studies, arts, culture and/or another related field. Based on current projects, preference will be given to students with a demonstrated interest in traditional or community-based arts administration or
museum collections management. The Pamunkey Indian Museum & Cultural Center is located on the Pamunkey Indian Reservation in King William, VA. Due to the nature of current projects, work will need to be completed onsite, with the option for a hybrid schedule on some projects. The 250 hours of the internships must be divided over a 12-week period (from the first week of June through the last week of August) with the intern averaging 21 hours per week. A final schedule will be negotiated with the Museum Director. This internship pays $15 per hour.
Goals: Internship experiences could focus in the following areas: processing and digitizing of archival material; documenting, photographing, and cataloging of artifact collections; exhibition development, design and curation; developing training materials for Tribal artists, including workshops on small business build out, website management, online sales and utilization of social media platforms; designing social media content for the museum and creating blog posts to share internally with the Tribal community. All internships will include clerical activities, operational tasks, research, writing content (social media, exhibition, resource materials, etc.), assisting with public and private museum tours, and providing services related to public outreach. If desired, the intern will also have the opportunity to actively work on other Tribal projects under the Cultural Resources Department.
Outcomes: The tasks and project undertaken are negotiable, with the primary goal being to move the mission of the museum forward and enrich the student's understanding of the history, culture, and community of the Pamunkey Indian Tribe.
About: The Pamunkey Indian Museum & Cultural Center is owned and operated by the Pamunkey Indian Tribe. The museum is administered under the Tribe’s Cultural Resources Department. The museum opened on October 11, 1980. The focus of the museum is to share the Pamunkey Indian Tribe’s history and way of life from over 12,000 years ago through to the present. Glass display cabinets highlight the lifeways of the Pamunkey Indian Tribe, combining replicas with original Native American artifacts donated by Tribal Citizens from their personal and familial collections. The display cabinets begin with information dating to the Ice Age and incorporate all archaeological timeframes through to the modern period. The displays in each cabinet are sub-divided into four themes (PEOPLE, NATURAL ENVIRONMENT, SETTLEMENT and SUBSISTENCE). The museum also hosts a gift shop with items made/designed by Pamunkey Tribal Citizens.
Prince William County Historical Commission - POSITION FILLED
Dumfries, Virginia
One internship
Local History Research Project
Terms: In partnership with the County Archaeologist and the Office of Historic Preservation, the Historical Commission seek an intern to conduct a local historical research project. The intern must demonstrate the ability to work independently; possess strong oral and written communications skills; and organizational skills. The candidate must have access to housing and transportation to the office and research repositories. Hybrid options may be available in consultation with the selected candidate, but in-person attendance at monthly Historical Commission meetings is required. The intern’s workspace will be in the Planning Office, at 5 County Complex Court, Suite 210, Prince William, VA, and, or in the offices of the Historic Preservation, in the Williams Ordinary at 17674 Main Street, Dumfries, VA 22026. This internship is not to exceed 300 hours and the intern will be allotted a stipend of $4,500.
Goals: Study a now “disappeared” Prince William County settlement/community and the reasons for its disappearance. Conduct archival research to determine the location of the community and provide as much contextual information as possible, given the availability of records. Final product will include an article for the Journal of Prince William County History and a digital report that will be publicly accessible on the Office of Historic Preservation website. The selected intern will also make a final presentation to the Historical Commission at the conclusion of their internship.
Outcomes: Attendance at and reporting to the Prince William County Historical Commission during its regularly scheduled monthly meeting is required. These meetings take place on the second Tuesday of the month at 7:30 pm at 5 County Complex Court, Suite 210, Prince William, VA. The summer meeting dates are June 13, July 11, and August 15.
Scottsville Museum - POSITION FILLED
Scottsville, Virginia
One part-time internship
Museum Collections Research Project
Terms: Seeking an advanced undergraduate or graduate student with an interest in history as revealed by material culture, who has computer skills and a passion for organization. Personal transportation is required, as part of the project involves work at the Scottsville Museum. There will also be some research which may be done via home computer and scanning which can be done at the University of Virginia’s art department under the supervision of one of our Board Members. The internship will be between Monday, May 22nd through Sunday, August 13th, including a formal project presentation to the museum board on the first Saturday in August, an exhibition, and a written article for our newsletter and website. This 10-week internship is part-time (16-24 hours per week) and pays $11-$13//hour (undergraduate) or $12-$15/hour (graduate).
Goals: The Scottsville Museum is a small-town museum with a limited budget run by volunteers. We have a disparate collection of artifacts, nearly all received as gifts, making it a challenge to marshal them into a coherent exhibition. We need to update our database, including recent acquisitions, to make planning exhibitions and conducting research easier. We also need to digitize print items not currently in our database and add them under specific subject headings. Through collections work and research on specific items or themes, our interns deepen their historical research skills, gain hands-on experience working with archives, and play a role in telling our town or area’s stories.
Outcome: With the guidance of three of the members of the Museum Board, the intern will be trained in the use of Past Perfect and undertake the project of adding items in the collection to the database. They will also undertake some research to illuminate the significance of objects, which will form the basis for a small exhibition either at the Museum or as a digital exhibition on the web. In addition, the intern(s) will write a four- to five-page report reviewing the summer’s work and give a brief report to the Scottsville Museum Board of Directors at the August board meeting.
About: The Scottsville Museum and Historic Landmarks Foundation is a nonprofit, incorporated organization which seeks to preserve for the public benefit the historical, natural, and artistic heritage of the Scottsville community and surrounding areas of southern Albemarle County. It is housed in a former Disciples of Christ Church, built in 1846, and its adjacent parsonage, the Barclay House. The latter building has been renovated to create research and meeting space, and to house technical systems, archives, library, and storage space. The Museum is on Main Street in downtown Scottsville. It displays permanent and rotating exhibits relating to the town and its history. It is open to the public on weekends from April to October, and by appointment at other times. Should a prospective intern be interested in visiting the Museum, a private tour can be arranged by contacting Connie Geary at info@scottsvillemuseum.com.
Stratford Hall- POSITION FILLED
Stratford, Virginia
One internship
African American Descendant Engagement Intern
Terms: Stratford Hall seeks an advanced undergraduate intern majoring in African American Studies, History, Anthropology, or Public History for a six-week internship focusing on African American descendant engagement. Successful candidates will have demonstrated interest in community engagement, program planning, historical research, and public history. Intern must be able to work 30-40 hours a week, including the weekend of July 22-23, when Stratford holds its annual First Africans Day. Stratford Hall is located in Westmoreland County, Virginia, and offers on-site housing as part of the internship package. This internship will pay $15 per hour for 260 hours of work, schedule to be negotiated with the employer.
Goals and Outcomes: The intern will work under the direction of Vice President of Collections and Public Engagement, Dr. Kelley Fanto Deetz, and duties will be in support of Stratford Hall’s dedication to descendant engagement, including historical research, assisting with oral history and documentary film production, community outreach, event planning, and general office duties as assigned.
About: Stratford Hall is a National Historic Landmark located in Westmoreland County, VA nestled along the Potomac River. A publicly accessible museum and historic site for over ninety years and home to the only two brothers to have signed the Declaration of Independence, Stratford Hall will leverage the upcoming 250th Anniversary of the birth of our nation to reintroduce our broad and diverse stories to our communities and stakeholders.
UVA President’s Commission on the University in the Age of Segregation - POSITIONS FILLED
Charlottesville, Virginia (hybrid options available)
Two internships
Archival research and transcription
Terms: Advanced undergraduate or graduate student with background in American history. The intern will work with the President’s Commission on the University in the Age of Segregation on the history of the University of Virginia, 1865-1965. This will involve archival research, document photographing, and professional transcription/editing of historical documents. Intern should demonstrate strong organizational and analytic skills, ability to work independently, and write clearly. Hybrid work options available. These internships pay $15/hr.
Goals: Primary responsibilities include archival research, document photographing, and professional documentary transcription (we will train first), proofreading, and writing of descriptive primary document-based essays as part of the university’s public confronting of its own difficult past. Interns will also learn Omeka metadata entry to prepare documents for publication on the PCUAS website.
Outcome: The intern will be expected to complete specific tasks as outlined above. At the end of the summer, the intern will have a detailed understanding of both the technical processes involved in archival research, public history, and the post-1865 history of the University of Virginia.
About: The President’s Commission on the University in the Age of Segregation (PCUAS) is co-directed by Andrea Douglas, Executive Director of the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center and Kirt von Daacke, Professor (History) and Assistant Dean, College of Arts & Sciences. PCUAS is funded by the President’s Office and is charged with exploring and reporting on UVA’s historical relationship with the era of segregation, especially as it connects to the Charlottesville/Albemarle community.
About: The President’s Commission on the University in the Age of Segregation (PCUAS) is co-directed by Andrea Douglas, Executive Director of the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center and Kirt von Daacke, Professor (History & American Studies) and Assistant Dean, College of Arts & Sciences. PCUAS is funded by the President’s Office and is charged with exploring and reporting on UVA’s historical relationship with the era of segregation, especially as it connects to the Charlottesville/Albemarle community.
Virginia Folklife Program, Virginia Humanities - ALL POSITIONS FILLED
Charlottesville, Virginia (or remote)
Three internships
Assistant to Virginia State Folklorist and Digital Media Specialist
Terms: The Virginia Folklife Program seeks an intern to work closely with the Virginia State Folklorist and Digital Media Specialist on a variety of projects. Graduate students should have at least one year of study in a folklife-related field (see below) and demonstrated interested in traditional or community-based arts and/or arts administration. Advanced undergraduates should have coursework related to folklife (ethnomusicology, anthropology, history, American Studies, or other arts and culture fields). Interns must be able to work a minimum of 8 hours a week, with 16-20 hours a week preferred. The Virginia Folklife Program offices are located at the Dairy Market on Preston Avenue in Charlottesville, and interns may work in person, remotely, or hybrid. This internship is for 200 hours o er the course of the summer, and pays $15/hr for undergraduates and $20/hour for graduate students.
Goals and Outcomes: Interns’ duties will include some combination of: processing fieldwork materials (interview transcription); developing profiles of artists for our website and social media; design social media content; supporting Apprenticeship Program (event planning, application review, etc.); assisting with the Richmond Folk Life Festival; market research and/or audience survey development; writing content for our online publication Sights & Sounds. If desired, the intern will also have the opportunity to design and undertake independent fieldwork on a region, tradition, or community in Virginia to add to our archives and publish on Sights & Sounds.
About: The Virginia Folklife Program is the state center for the documentation, presentation, support, and celebration of Virginia’s rich cultural heritage. The Virginia Folklife Program was established in 1989 as part of Virginia Humanities, the state humanities council, with funding support from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts Folk Arts Program. Whether sung or told, hand-crafted or performed, Virginia’s rich folklife refers to those “arts of everyday life” that reflect a sense of traditional knowledge and connection to community. Virginia’s folkways are rich with traditions that have been rooted in the Commonwealth for centuries, as well as those that more recently have been carried here and nourished by Virginia’s diverse immigrant communities.
Virginia Museum of History and Culture - POSITION FILLED
Richmond, Virginia
One internship
Architecture/history researcher
Terms: undergraduate intern with coursework in history/architectural history (20th-century US preferred) and the following qualifications: some experience in primary source research and secondary reading; effective written and verbal communication skills; neat handwriting; knowledge or interest in architectural history. The intern will report to the Senior Archivist. This internship will be performed onsite at our museum located in Richmond. The Virginia Museum of History and culture is committed to diversity and inclusion. This internship will pay $15 per hour for 280 hours of work, schedule to be negotiated with the employer.
Goals: The intern will work with the Senior Archivist and collections management staff to process the papers of a noted architectural historian based in Williamsburg.
Outcomes: Expected outcome is the inventory and rehousing of the collection, and completion of a finding aid for researchers to access the collection.
About: The Virginia Museum of History & Culture is owned and operated by the Virginia Historical Society—a private, non-profit organization. The historical society is the oldest cultural organization in Virginia, and one of the oldest and most distinguished history organizations in the nation. For use in its state history museum and its renowned research library, the historical society cares for a collection of nearly nine million items representing the ever-evolving story of Virginia.