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For many, summer vacation is synonymous with sunny beaches and relaxation.  Genevieve Caffrey ’17 however saw an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of some of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens this summer as an intern at a prominent non-profit child advocacy organization, the Children’s Defense Fund. Her internship was supported by the Levitt Center.

Charlotte Bennett ’17 hopes to accomplish two things at her internship this summer: help sexual assault survivors be heard and enforce victims’ rights. She is state legislative and policy intern at SurvJustice, a non-profit in Washington, D.C., that provides legal services to survivors of sexual violence.

Yuwen Michelson’s ’17, a sociology major, is interning with Quill.org, a web-based literacy tool that provides personalized, interactive writing lessons for middle school and high school students.

Genevieve Caffrey ’17 recently completed a summer internship with one office of the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&PI), under the Department of Children and Families, in Cranford, NJ. Caffrey’s internship was supported by the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center through a Levitt Public Service Internship Award, awards which provide funding to students taking up unpaid or minimally-paid summer work focused on public service.

While many Hamilton students end up pursuing their passions professionally after graduation, some start earlier. Carolyn Kossow ’17 is spending her summer in an internship with the Health and Reproductive Rights section of the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) in Washington, D.C.

One of the chief benefits of a liberal arts education, and of Hamilton’s open curriculum in particular, is the opportunity that it affords students to experiment academically and to discover their passions. So it was with Sean Henry-Smith ’15, a student who until the second semester of his first year at Hamilton had never picked up a camera, and who now just graduated from Hamilton with a paid internship at the Light Work center in Syracuse, N.Y.

Four Hamilton students who have created meaningful projects to address global problems through their work with the Levitt Public Affairs Center had the opportunity to share their ideas on a much larger stage when they were chosen to attend the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) in Miami on March 6-8. Ryan Ong ’16, Sharif Shrestha ’17, Tsion Tesfaye ’16 and Jose Vazquez ’15  - all of whom are Levitt Social Innovation Fellows or Public Service Interns – were among 1000 college and university students selected to take part in the prestigious conference.

Rebuilding Together is the largest national volunteer home rehabilitation organization in the United States. The local branch, Rebuilding Together Mohawk Valley (RTMV), has been assisting the elderly, physically and mentally disabled, and working poor in the local area since 1997.  Nick Solano ’14 began working with RTMV during his sophomore year and was recently appointed executive director of the local organization.

Whether it’s through a varsity sport, a cultural diversity club or a service organization, Hamilton students devote both time and energy throughout the year to getting involved in their community. Peter Maher ’13 is no exception and has a unique story to tell. Over the past two years, he has spent more than 30 hours a week interning with the police department in the nearby city of Rome, N.Y.

As an Environmental Studies major with a concentration in Women’s Studies, Lauren Howe ’13 has always been interested in working with non-profit organizations dealing with relevant environmental issues. This past summer, with the help of the Levitt Public Service Internship Fund, Howe was able to intern in the legal services department of the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources in their Amherst office.