GHS Internships Flourish this Spring

The internship program at Grenada High School continues to expand, granting students real-world work experience in their chosen career path as well as a generous hourly wage.

Tiffany Reed, Career Coach at GHS, has matched several seniors with local businesses that suit their interests. The experience is proving mutually beneficial for both students and businesses.

Senior Nadia Reed said she has wanted to be a lawyer “ever since I could remember.” She was placed with the Carlos Moore Law Group in February and has been busy filing and organizing case files.

“There are a lot of pieces that go into this whole puzzle,” she said. “It’s mind-blowing how many parts make this office run.”

Ray Shoemaker, the firm’s Chief Operating Officer, said Miss Reed is doing fantastic. “She’s a very hard worker, a self-starter, and catches on well. She needs very little supervision. Just give her a task, and she takes it from there. That’s exactly what we’re looking for.”

Carlos Moore, the firm’s Founding Attorney, said he has been impressed with Miss Reed. “She is very bright and eager to learn and contribute to the firm,” Moore said. “I foresee a long and prosperous future ahead if she stays the course.”

This is the second year the Carlos Moore Law Group has participated in the GHS internship program. “We’ve seen the success of it,” said Shoemaker. “We took the chance to see how it would go, and it’s been a great program for us.”

Miss Reed graduates in May and said she plans to attend the University of Mississippi, where she’ll major in law with a minor in business. She hopes to open her own law firm one day. “She will be an asset to the legal profession,” Moore said. 

Meanwhile, GHS senior Vivian King described her interest in criminal psychology to Career Coach Reed, who developed a hybrid internship that would touch on the various aspects of law and psychology. 

Miss King began her internship with Dr. Syrenia Johnson of Psychosocial Solutions, a local office that provides mental health and social services to a wide array of clients. Dr. Johnson began teaching King terminology and ethics, especially privacy and confidentiality policies, before allowing her to sit in on therapy sessions. 

Miss King said she has become interested in diagnosing and helping people. “My favorite part is listening in on sessions and hearing how (Dr. Johnson) responds to them,” she said. “You really start to understand what people are going through.”

Johnson said she was happy to open her doors to a serious student like Miss King to expand the visibility of her profession, which includes life coaching, substance abuse training, and telehealth sessions. “When I was in high school, I didn’t know this was an option,” Johnson said. “I thought only doctors or psychiatrists had their own office in this field.”

Before graduating in May, Miss King will embark on the second part of her internship at a local law office. She plans to attend the University of Mississippi to study psychology and is interested in exploring a career with the FBI. 

Senior Shelbie Woodall planned to pursue a career in dentistry. After a career coaching session, Reed reached out to Horan Family Dental in Grenada to see if they’d be willing to take on a student intern.

“I felt like it would be a wonderful opportunity for a student to have on-site experience and quasi-training to see if this was for sure something they wanted to do,” said Dr. Hayden Horan. “If so, they could learn the basics before they received more advanced training.”

Horan said that Miss Woodall is mostly shadowing him. “Not being a hygienist yet, she can’t do a whole lot with the patients, but we’ve gone over instruments, how the office works, and the day-to-day things she’d be doing.”

Miss Woodall said her stint in the dental office has opened her eyes and solidified her intentions. She plans to attend Northwest next fall and ultimately acquire her dental degree from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. 

Students receive more than experience from their internships. Some positions pay up to $12 an hour through a program with Three Rivers Planning & Development District and the state’s workforce development partner, AccelerateMS. 

Reed, who works directly in GHS through Three Rivers, meets one-on-one with high school students to assess their interests and develop a plan. Once the student has fulfilled the requirements for the program — including good attendance, grades, behavior, and job skills training — Reed works with the corresponding business to assure them the pay and liability is covered by the internship program. 

“Even though a student may get the internship award from me, they still have to interview with the business,” Reed said. “It has to fit that business, so we’re not pushing students on anyone. The students must interview in person. They have to come in, they have to present themselves well, and give a good interview in order to completely land the internship.”

Reed confers with work site supervisors regularly to check up on student performance and to ensure that the business is providing a safe learning environment for the student. 

“For a business, opening their doors is invaluable to these students,” said Reed. “Either to solidify their interests or show them it’s not for them.” 

So far this year, students in the program have affirmed their interests through this unique opportunity at on-the-job training.