Base making more internships available

Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) hosted an internship fair with students from ACE Charter High School Sept. 19, offering 18 students a chance to interview for six different unpaid internships at multiple commands across the base.

ACE Charter High School, located in Camarillo, focuses on architecture, construction and engineering classes in addition to the usual high school curriculum. Internships are a requirement for graduation.

“It’s really about getting the kids exposure to the workplace,” said Principal Ron Fisher. “I found that kids graduate high school and have no idea what they want to do. Internships give them a better idea of what kind of jobs they might enjoy or have a knack for.”

Sarah Rollston, environmental engineer, and John Brito, fuels engineer, both with Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, were on hand to interview for two positions within their command.

“We’re really building that relationship with the community and maybe planting the seeds for our future engineers,” Brito said.

“Giving them that hands-on experience is important,” Rollston added. “It’s good to see how what they learn in the classroom is applied in the field.”

As the county’s largest employer, NBVC is in a unique position to offer these opportunities, explained Capt. David Sasek, NBVC’s chief staff officer and a driving force behind expanding the base’s internship offerings.

“This fair is just the beginning,” Sasek said. “Nearly 20,000 people work on the base every day doing everything from hospitality and food service work to high-tech science and engineering. Our goal is to offer many more students from our community multiple opportunities throughout the year.”

Working with a committee of individuals from tenant commands, Sasek and Monica James, NBVC school liaison officer, are working to increase awareness about internship opportunities both inside and outside the fenceline.

“Students need opportunities in every field, from administration to marketing to engineering,” James said.

NBVC plans to host another internship fair in the spring, and James is urging commands to look now and see where they might be able to host an intern. Opportunities range from one-on-one mentoring or job shadowing to group tours offering the basics about a particular job or command.

“It’s really about offering whatever we can to our community and our students,” Sasek said. “We have so much to offer these kids; we just need to tap into it a little more.”

For more information or to learn about hosting an intern, contact Monica James at 805-989-5211.