Business

‘I Am Thrilled’: NCHS Senior Internship Program Underway

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As the school year comes to a close, nearly every New Canaan High School senior is turning to the increasingly popular Senior Internship Program to provide them with the real-world job experience that is expected of them in college and beyond. May 22 marked the first day students ventured into New Canaan and surrounding towns’ businesses and organizations to join the workforce as interns. Assigned jobs ranged anywhere from gardening at churches to working in interior design. Run by Program Coordinator Heather Bianco, ‘SIP,’ as it’s known, reached a record-high number of participants in 2018, at 94 percent of the graduating class. While it earned high marks from past participants, the program still needed some adjustments this year, Bianco said.

News

Record-High 94 Percent of NCHS Seniors To Enter Internship Program

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This spring, 289 New Canaan High School seniors will participate in an increasingly popular internship program that sends the students to work for the last month of the academic year at local and area businesses and organizations. The figure represents about 94 percent of the Class of 2018—marking a high point in the history of a program that launched with just a dozen NCHS seniors in 2011. Heather Bianco, coordinator of the Senior Internship Program, attributed the rise in popularity of ‘SIP’ its many benefits for students. “It just gives them experience out of school in a work environment that they don’t get in school and a lot of them have not had a job before, so it just gives a professional environment where they can get a real-life work experience,” Bianco, who is in her second full year of overseeing the program, told NewCanaanite.com. Here’s a look at its growth (article continues below):

 

Bianco took the reins from Sue Carroll, who as coordinator of the College and Career Center at NCHS had overseen the development and first several years of SIP with help from a volunteer steering committee.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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Police fined an Elm Street business $200 after it was found noncompliant during an unannounced tobacco and electronic cigarette inspection. A-1 Cellars, a liquor store at 282 Elm St., was cited for sale of tobacco to a minor and sale of an e-cigarette to a minor following the Oct. 20 inspection, which the New Canaan Police Department conducted with the state. Retailers found to be in compliance included Stewarts Spirits, Walgreens, Vegetable Barn Mobil Marts on South Avenue and the Merritt Parkway, Veggie Barn, Acme and Gulf station. ***

The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday approved 3-0 the hiring of Christopher Wegrzyn as town sanitarian in the New Canaan Health Department, succeeding Carla DeLucia in the role.

Business

‘The Ball Is in Your Court’: New Canaan High School Seniors Begin Internships

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Starting May 16, scores of New Canaan High School seniors have flooded local businesses and organizations in New Canaan and throughout Fairfield County to teach kindergarten, shuck oysters, plant onions and otherwise gain what for many has been first-time, first-hand real world work experience. The Senior Internship Program is seeing 269 students participating this year—that’s 83 percent of the senior class and a 23 percent increase from 2016. The program offers a wide range of internships, from law offices and local government to nature and environmental science agencies. NCHS Senior Internship Coordinator Heather Bianco said she believes the program helps students learn concepts that cannot be taught in a traditional school environment. “I think the [the program] not only provides a hands-on learning experience for students that they can’t get from school, but also helps them decide on their career path,” Bianco said.

Business

83 Percent of NCHS Seniors Apply for Spring Internship Program; Host Sites Needed

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As an already popular program that places New Canaan High School seniors in local businesses for internships each spring skyrockets toward an all-time high in participation, district officials are seeking additional “host sites” to accommodate the students. Of the 333 total seniors in the NCHS class of 2017, 278 applied for the “Senior Internship Program,” up from 165 one year ago. “Because we have over 100 more kids than last year, we are looking for 100 more spots, so that is our challenge,” said Susan Carroll, coordinator of the College & Career Center at NCHS. Asked to account for the program’s rapidly rising popularity, Carroll said: “I think that it is part of the culture at New Canaan High School now. This class, because the program is eight years old, they have never not had seniors going into a senior internship program.