With an eye on the future, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater is launching a new jobs project for youth and young adults.
Plenty of articles in The Virginian-Pilot and stories on local broadcast news shows have focused on population changes and a shifting job market in Tidewater. Parents shake their heads as they watch adult children graduate from colleges and universities only to leave the area to pursue opportunities elsewhere.
Jewish Tidewater’s leaders recognize the need to support young Jewish people and to help provide job opportunities whenever possible to keep kids close, to strengthen the Jewish community, and to cultivate future leaders and supporters.
UJFT’s Young Adult Division is spearheading the roll-out of a new internship program to help provide career prospects to local Jewish students, with a long-term goal of encouraging those students to seek and find jobs after graduation, here in Hampton Roads.
The internship program will serve as a tool to introduce young adults to local job positions so that Tidewater’s Jewish community can ultimately grow stronger—L’Dor V’dor.
This year’s roll-out will target rising high school seniors looking for two-week shadowing opportunities throughout the summer in various industries. The goal is to broaden the program next summer to also include college students for longer internships.
Now in its infancy, UJFT is currently building a bank of job options. The Federation’s role will be to help match-up job seekers with job providers by acting as a clearinghouse for individuals seeking internships and businesses/practices offering them. Each business will review students’ resumes, interview candidates, and make hiring decisions. They will work directly with applicants to negotiate start and end dates, any compensation, and all other specifics.
UJFT is providing this service to help local students recognize the opportunities available to them right here at home.
Businesses that are interested in offering internships to young Jewish adults should visit Jewishva.org/intern to complete the online form about potential positions.
For more information, contact Elana McGovern, UJFT YAD director, at emcgovern@ujft.org or Linda Ausch, UJFT development director, at lausch@ujft.org.
UJFT launches internship program
