Young Women of the West......Internship
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Internship
At the conclusion of the workshops, the young women will apply for the next phase of the program, and participate in a three-month internship program with women business owners. From January to April, the students will spend at least 30 hours in an on-site internship with a local female entrepreneur whose business closest matched their career interests. The purpose of this phase is to gain real-life experiences and skills needed to own and operate their own businesses, and for the women business owners to have a unique way to provide hands-on training to young women interested in the business world. Neither the students nor their mentors are paid for their time, but the students can receive school credit.
Recent mentors were Beth Wallisch–Architect, Lori Gama-White of DaGama Web Studio, Kathy Lanning, Organizer Extraordinaire, Diane Johannsen of the Ft. Collins Club , Amy Madden of Idea Curve, Lorna Spears, owner of Scruples Beauty Supply & Salon, Diana Lee, owner of Diana’s Custom Interior Design, LLC ., Jaci Huerter of The Loveland Design Center , Colleen M. Miller, CPA, JD, CFP, owner of The Financial Connection By Design. Kelly Peters of The Loveland Center For Business Development , and Deb Alles, of Advertising WORKS! and Speaking Of, International Speakers’ Bureau . Upon completion of the internships, a graduation dinner was held for the students, their families and their mentors. Past celebrations have been held at Lauren Smith’s The Lovelander Bed & Breakfast , and Linda Stotz’s The McCreery House. The girls and mentors receive gifts such as the Songs of Success CDs.
How did YWOW come into existence? Back in 1995, Maury Willman (a Ft. Collins business owner), Cec Ortiz (the head of the Women's Business Office of the State of Colorado ) and a few other women in business felt there was gap in the School To Career programs offered to high school youth: There was no program that matched girls who wanted to own their own business with women business owners. After a great deal of hard work, the Women''s Business Office found grant money and the Young Women of the West program was created. It was funded by a gender equity grant from the Colorado Community College and Occupations Educations Systems.
In the Fall of 1995 YWOW pilots were set up in Colorado Springs, Grand Junction and Loveland-Berthoud. Ann Clarke was Site Facilitator for the Loveland-Berthoud program and later the Estes Park program.
In 1997 YWOW was expanded to Fort Collins and Telluride, and in 1998 to Estes Park. Each site received funding from the CCCOES grant via the Women's Business Office of the State of Colorado the first year and must then be self-sustaining. This was a challenge, and by the Fall of 1999, there were only two YWOW programs running: in Colorado Springs and Loveland-Berthoud, where they were funded by the school districts. Dr. Nancy Wear and the Thompson R2J School District have continued to write for grants to support and fund program for the four high schools in our area. In the fall of 1999, the Colorado Springs program was taken over by a for-profit corporation and became "YEA." Loveland/Berthoud was the only remaining YWOW program.
What will happen to YWOW now?(Click here to read more)
Y.W.O.W. homepage | Y.W.O.W. Workshop Training Topics | Y.W.O.W. Internship | Importance of Mentoring | Y.W.O.W. Program Info
Some one-on-one training between a YWOW mentor and student.
YWOW Mentors and Students have said ...
"I am especially grateful for your faith in me. The internship was a learning experience that no school could have provided. I want to thank you for putting so much effort into the Young Women of the West program."--Tonya Runnels
"The Young Women of the West program touched many, many girls and truly made a difference in their lives. Your enthusiasm for the program and positive attitude towards life has been a wonderful model for these young ladies."--Peg Obenhaus
Find out how you can start a YWOW program in your part of the world! (Click here)
