Internships

Internship Interview: Adam Carter

Adam Carter,

Headshot of Adam Carter smiling into the camera

Zephyrhills Correctional Facility

For my summer internship project, I designed and implemented a creative writing program with a group of incarcerated persons at the Zephyrhills Correctional Facility. The course itself consisted of two and one-half hours of instruction on Wednesday evenings, and turned out to be some of the most fulfilling engagement with writers I have ever had. Teaching at the college level is certainly worthwhile, but teaching a group of writers who have no reason to be in the classroom other than their pure desire to learn more about the craft is a truly gratifying experience.

It turned out that the classroom instruction was only a minor aspect of the internship. The real lessons to be learned were found in the time and energy dedicated to establish such a program, to continue to comply with both university and institution requirements during the project, and to determine how such a program could best progress forward. The latter of this has turned into a project of its own, as I am now working with various university entities in an attempt to turn this one-time volunteer internship into a sustainable program.