New Haven Promise Interns reflect on their summer at Yale Library

This summer, seven New Haven Promise Internship students worked in various positions throughout the library. The New Haven Promise internship program is designed to provide local students with valuable work experience, mentorship, and professional development opportunities. It also helps local employers like Yale build a high-quality, diversified workforce. 

 

Among the summer interns working at the library from this June through mid-August were Owen Faulkner and Ja’nya Hill.

 

Own worked as an Information Technology Intern in Library Administrative Services and IT. “Being able to interact with and get hands-on experience in all of the different departments within Library ITS was invaluable,” Owen said. “I discovered a lot about myself and gained valuable insight into what I want to pursue in my professional career.”

 

The internship experience not only exposes students to new work environments, it also helps them discover personal strengths that will be invaluable in the future. “The skills I’ve developed the most are my initiative and proactiveness. Although these may not sound like skills at first, I believe they are the two of the most important traits to work on during your career,” Owen said. “It truly is amazing what can happen from asking one simple question!”

 

Ja’nya worked as a Metadata Services intern in Library Technical Services. Her time was spent working on the Black Bibliography Project. “This project’s work is highly critical,” Ja’nya said, “as there is an abundance of information regarding Black print that often goes undocumented and is essentially lost in history.”  The project—whose goal is to revive the practice of descriptive bibliography for African American literary studies—is supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Rutgers University, and Yale University. Ja’nya had the opportunity to meet and work with core staff members, fellows, faculty, and doctoral students these institutions. 

 

Ja’nya took away from her Yale Library experience a sense of belonging. “Underrepresented communities who seek to be at Yale belong at Yale too,” she said. “There are always opportunities for work and scholarship at Yale, and having more underrepresented communities here will not only foster innovation but also enhance intellectual development.”

 

The New Haven Promise Internship Program is part of the New Haven Promise scholarship program, established in 2010, which supports students pursuing higher education and preparing for their future careers