Los Angeles County Funds 124 Summer Internships At 87 Arts Organizations

Los Angeles County, through its Arts Commission, has given grants totaling $496,000 to 87 performing, literary, media and municipal arts organizations throughout Los Angeles County to support paid internships for college undergraduates in summer 2008.

Descriptions of and contacts for the 124 internship positions are posted on the Arts Commission’s web site. Go to www.lacountyarts.org, click on Internships, then 2008 Internship Positions or click here to download the information.

Interested undergraduates should apply directly to the organization offering the internship, not the Arts Commission. College undergraduates either resident in or attending school in Los Angeles County are eligible for the internships.

Interns are paid $350 per week for ten weeks and take part in educational and arts networking activities. Through the program, interns gain a deeper understanding of the work involved in nonprofit arts administration and the role of the arts in a community, and develop business skills that can be put to use in their future careers. Internship host organizations help mold and shape potential new workers in the arts field who may go on to arts leadership positions on staffs, boards or as volunteers.

Organizations in the County’s Fourth Supervisorial District offering arts internships include: Arts & Services For Disabled, Inc., City of Torrance, Friends of the Cerritos Center, International City Theatre, Long Beach Symphony Association, Musical Theatre West, and Public Corporation for the Arts/Arts Council for Long Beach.

Examples of County internship experiences include:
 

- An operations/education intern to work at the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra to plan and prepare for the 2008-2009 season of artistic, production, and education activities, working closely with the Artistic Department staff to gain a hands-on experience in preparing and coordinating multiple aspects of concert production, artist relations, and programs.
 

- A music production & administrative assistant to work at Arts & Services for the Disabled to support programs for students with development disabilities. The summer project will culminate with the intern and ASD students creating and producing a musical piece for broadcast by ASD that will potentially air on local state and/or community college radio stations and online.
 

- An education associate to work at the Friends of the Cerritos Center to assist in the development and implementation of the Center’s educational programs for youth. The intern will gain hands-on experience in arts instruction activities, including curriculum development for the Professional Development Workshops for Teachers program, production of the annual Educator’s Handbook, and general implementation and program administration.