From UMaine

ORONO — Thir­ty-five undergraduate and graduate college students are working in state, mu­nicipal and county offices through the 2021 Maine Government Summer In­ternship Program.

The Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center at the University of Maine administers the program that provides full-time, 12-week work experience to students who are Maine residents and scholars at­tending Maine colleges.

Twenty-two interns are working in depart­ments of Maine state gov­ernment, including Educa­tion; Labor; Economic and Community Development; Environmental Protection; and Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management. Thirteen are taking part in municipal and county in­ternships in locations rang­ing from Bangor to Bath.

The students’ educa­tional backgrounds include law, business, government, environmental studies, en­gineering and economics. They’re utilizing knowl­edge and skills they’ve gained in higher education to work as GIS specialists, town manager assistants, law interns, hydrogeology assistants, marketing and planning specialists, media content creators, and con­servation assistants. Many have expressed interest in pursuing a career in gov­ernment or public service.

MCS Policy Cen­ter pairs each intern with a direct supervisor in the host agency, department or municipality. Students tackle assigned projects and provide their skills, enthusiasm and fresh ap­proaches to issues facing departments and commu­nities. Students gain pro­fessional work experience, networking opportunities, and insights into the func­tions of local and state gov­ernments.

Due to COVID-19, some interns are working remotely, and most hope to transition to in-person work as government offic­es reopen.

The 103rd Maine Legislature established the Maine Government Sum­mer Internship Program in 1967 to attract and select college students with am­bition and talent for tem­porary internships within government. Over the past 50 years, nearly 1,800 students have completed internships. For more in­formation, visit mcspolicy­center.umaine.edu.

The interns include:

Karoline Bass of Or­ono, Maine; St. Lawrence University; hydrogeology assistant, Maine Depart­ment of Environmental Protection;

Hannah Bonine of Bath, Maine; University of Southern Maine; planning research assistant, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Land Use Planning Com­mission;

Christine Bratcher of Bucksport, Maine; Husson University; outdoor indus­try project assistant, Maine Department of Economic and Community Develop­ment;

McKenna Brodeur of Oakland, Maine; Universi­ty of Maine at Farmington; step up program assistant, Maine Department of La­bor;

Meghan Buckley of Greene, Maine; Tem­ple University; opioid re­sponse project assistant, Maine Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future and DHHS Of­fice of Behavioral Health;

Alec Byron of Farmingdale, Maine; Thomas College; econom­ic and community develop­ment coordinator, Town of China;

Savannah Clark of Vassalboro, Maine; Uni­versity of Maine; ceme­tery census and mapping project organizer, Town of Vassalboro;

Mia Denison of Brunswick, Maine; Uni­versity of King’s College; benefits and policies coor­dinator, Maine Department of Administrative and Fi­nancial Services;

Elliot Dixon of Albi­on, Maine; University of Maine; intelligent trans­portation Systems and traf­fic safety analyst, Maine Department of Transporta­tion;

James Dixon of Clinton, Maine; Norwich University; bridge main­tenance assistant, Maine Department of Transporta­tion;

Madison Douglas of Windham, Maine; Univer­sity of Southern Maine; emergency operations planner, Town of Bridgton;

Sarah Gracie of Lib­erty, Maine; University of Maine School of Law; le­gal assistant, Maine Office of the Public Advocate;

Oliver Hall of Au­burn, Maine; Williams College; data processing and economic research as­sistant, Maine Department of Labor;

Shannon Harty of Bowdoinham, Maine; Saint Michael’s College; county planning assistant, Lincoln County;

Emmett Herr of Yar­mouth, Maine; McGill University; worker ad­vocate assistant, Maine Workers’ Compensation Board;

Drew Hersom of Gray, Maine;

University of Maine School of Law; community and economic development committee intern, Town of Gray;

Megan Lemieux of Vassalboro, Maine; Unity College; vital records man­agement and GIS intern, Town of Readfield;

Michael Levesque of Augusta, Maine; Universi­ty of Maine at Farmington; GIS mapping coordinator, Town of Union;

Jacob Maker of Wal­pole, Maine; Norwich University; town manager assistant, Town of Chelsea;

Hajna Nagy of Gar­diner, Maine; Bowdoin College; diversity, equity, and inclusion assistant, Maine Department of Health and Human Ser­vices;

Hayden Ouellette of Augusta, Maine; Uni­versity of Maine; energy and engineering assistant, Maine Department of De­fense, Veterans and Emer­gency Management, Maine Army National Guard;

Wilson Radulski of Bangor, Maine; Husson University; conservation assistant, Maine Depart­ment of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Manage­ment, Maine Army Nation­al Guard;

Peter Sachs of Free­port, Maine; Kenyon Col­lege; Freeport economic development and planning intern, Freeport Economic Development Corporation;

Katie Schools of Gor­ham, Maine; University of Southern Maine; commu­nity and economic devel­opment assistant, City of Bath

Kimberly Smith of West Paris, Maine; Uni­versity of Maine; benefits and policies coordinator, Maine Department of Ad­ministrative and Financial Services;

Kathleen Tims of Cornish, Maine; Universi­ty of Maine; sustainability intern, Maine Department of Environmental Protec­tion;

Charles Volkwein of Portland, Maine; Universi­ty of Maine School of Law; consumer credit examiner intern, Maine Department of Professional and Finan­cial Regulation;

Benjamin Willertz of West Bath, Maine; Uni­versity of Maine; energy and engineering assistant, Maine Department of De­fense, Veterans and Emer­gency Management, Maine Army National Guard;

The University of Maine, founded in Orono in 1865, is the state’s land grant, sea grant and space grant university. It is locat­ed on Marsh Island in the homeland of the Penob­scot Nation. As Maine’s flagship public university, UMaine has a statewide mission of teaching, re­search and economic de­velopment, and communi­ty service.