Thanks to generous support from the State Employees’ Credit Union (SECU) Foundation, the Carolina Center for Public Service is offering Carolina students the opportunity to apply to be an SECU Public Fellows Intern.
This program connects talented undergraduate students with community organizations in rural North Carolina communities. As an intern, you’ll benefit from meaningful professional experience with a local agency or organization, while giving back to a rural community that may be your own hometown. Interns will receive training and mentoring, and will be paid up to $5,000 (before taxes and other deductions). The start date for the summer internships typically will be no sooner than May and must be finished no later than the end of August. The specific dates will be agreed on by the partner organization, intern and CCPS.
Eligibility
To be considered for this position, applicants must:
- Be enrolled as a full-time undergraduate student at UNC-Chapel Hill during the spring semester of 2025, academically eligible and planning to return for the fall semester of 2025 and have an expected graduation date no earlier than December 2025
- Be a North Carolina resident
- Be able to work a minimum of 300 hours over the summer, exact times to be determined by supervisors.
- Depending on the needs of the placement site, be able and willing to work some evening and weekend hours
- Be able to participate in required pre-internship trainings, a local SECU branch advisory board meeting and post-internship follow-up, including a possible meeting with the SECU Foundation Board of Directors
- Have access to transportation necessary for commuting to and from the internship placement site. Some placement sites require regular access to a car (noted in position descriptions below).
- Be willing to complete all community site hiring requirements as needed (ie. background check).
- Applicants must not be a director, employee, or family member of a director or employee of SECU or SECU Foundation.
- Applicants must not have participated in the SECU Public Fellows Internship program in the past at any university.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, race, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation or status as a protected veteran.
Visit this webpage to learn more and apply
UCPCOG Regional Planning Associate
Location and Service Area
Wilson, NC
Serving Edgecombe, Halifax, Nash, Northampton, Wilson Counties
Organization Mission
The UCPCOG population of 296,296 is ranked eighth in the State. Unfortunately, as of 2019 four of the five counties (Edgecombe, Halifax, Wilson, and Northampton) are designated by the North Carolina Department of Commerce as Tier 1 economically distressed. In the region, 19.3% of the population lives in poverty. Associated with these dismal statistics are many problems but also many opportunities for making improvements. It is the mission of UCPCOG to address these concerns. “Working for a better tomorrow” is job one.
About the Position
- Hybrid (in-person & remote)
- 20-40 hours a week for up to 300 hours total
Position Description
The Upper Coastal Plain Council of Governments (UCPCOG) is seeking a Regional Planning Associate who will work among a team of 7 professional regional planners to administer and develop projects, detailed below, that benefit the five-county Upper Coastal Plain region. Serving as the lead regional organizations for a five-county region (Edgecombe, Halifax, Nash, Northampton, and Wilson Counties), UCPCOG’s Planning and Development Services Department (PDS) works in partnership with federal, state, and local member governments, allied organizations, and community leadership. With diverse sources of funding, PDS comprehensively identifies and addresses local and regional priorities and needs in the interrelated areas of community and economic development, infrastructure, workforce, and more.
The Regional Planning Associate will assist with regional food system planning efforts related to the regional food system vision and plan that comes out of the Tri-COG Food Ecosystem Economic Development Strategy in May of 2024. This could include, but is not limited to, finding funding to implement action items in the plan, exploring the need for a regional food council and the foundation needed for one, updating a map of food system infrastructure and farm and food business assistance, and participating in food system groups and conversations across the region/state to understand and promote the role of COGs in facilitating food system activities.
The Regional Planning Associate will also work with the PDS Director to update the 2021 Upper Coastal Plain Digital Inclusion Plan with the newly formed Upper Coastal Plain Digital Literacy Coalition (DLC). The Regional Planning Associate will guide the DLC in conducting a new digital inclusion asset inventory assessment that highlights the needs for broadband availability, broadband adoption, access to devices, digital literacy, and digital workforce development needs. Using the results of the asset inventory assessment, the Regional Planning Associate will guide the DLC in setting goals and objectives to address gaps and expand successful programs across the region. Unique goals and objectives will be developed for each county and the updated Digital Inclusion Plan will include region-wide goals and objectives. This process will involve data gathering, survey development and administration, research, meeting facilitation, presentations to elected boards and non-profit organizations, and plan development/publishing. The goal will not be to replace the 2021 Digital Inclusion Plan with an entirely new plan, but to develop a 2024 Digital Inclusion Plan Update using the existing plan as a template and the new DLC’s guidance to set refreshed goals and objectives.
The Regional Planning Associate may be asked to assist with other projects that relate to the Upper Coastal Plain Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS 2023-2027), which can be downloaded at ucpcog.org.
Qualifications
Ability to work remotely and in-person (mostly remote with the option of working from the office and some required in-person meetings), ability to attend occasional evening meetings, valid NC driver’s license, access to a vehicle, an interest in working with very small local governments and non-profit organizations, willingness to work with a team, good time management skills, knowledge of the principles of food system and digital inclusion planning, desktop publishing experience (such as Microsoft Publisher and PowerPoint, Adobe InDesign, Canva, or something similar to develop high-quality visual aids), and experience with (or interest in) working with traditionally underserved populations.