Internship Provided Critical Real World Experience for Recent Graduate
05/06/08
Recent University of Pittsburgh graduate Kara Snitger (A&S ’08) is not afraid to take the road less traveled. In fact, this self-assured young woman is perfectly at ease forging her own path to success and navigating the unexpected twists and turns of opportunity that emerge along the way. Snitger, who double majored in Urban Studies and History of Art and Architecture in the School of Arts and Sciences, knew early on that her perspective was a bit different than that of many of her peers.
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“I have always experienced the world in a visual way,” explains the Harrisburg, PA native, who hopes to secure a year-long AmeriCorps community service apprenticeship in 2008-2009 before applying to graduate school for nonprofit management. “I’m also very interested in community development, and I combined those aspects into my studies.” Snitger also was able to bring those passions together through a unique internship during the summer between |
her junior and senior years. Her internship, one of a handful of highly competitive state-wide placements offered through Keep PA Beautiful and the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, enabled her to serve as the project manager intern for a public art initiative in a rural community.
“I was studying abroad in Berlin and I got the notification while traveling in Poland that I had been accepted,” Snitger recalls. “I was elated. I wasn’t sure how I was going to manage it, but I was thrilled.”
Snitger had barely enough time to repack her suitcases from Europe before she was leaving for Philadelphia to attend a project orientation. Then it was off to begin her work with Grove City Revitalization, Inc. She was one of three students assigned to Grove City, where the assignment was to create a mural that reflected the area’s rich history as part of a larger downtown revitalization effort.
“Art is a perfect tool for not just aesthetic revitalization but economic development,” says Snitger. “If the art is good enough, people will stop and look and take the time to visit businesses and eat at the pizza shop.”
Grove City residents pose proudly beside their new mural
Snitger and two other students—both artists—worked closely with the Grove City community, including public officials, business owners, and interested citizens who wanted to share their ideas and offer their assistance.
“We were there from May through August, and we put together a business plan, designed the mural, coordinated volunteers to paint, secured donations of everything from paint and sealant to the dedication plaque, and then coordinated the unveiling ceremony. It was a really good lesson in community planning on a small scale,” says Snitger.
Though Snitger was the project team’s leader, she wholeheartedly credits the residents of Grove City with the success of the effort. “The whole point of the project was to use art to connect community members and make them feel invested,” says Snitger. “That mural is indebted to the entire community. We didn’t ‘give them’ the mural—they truly participated and gave it to themselves. To date, that’s my proudest accomplishment.”
See more photos of the mural project (PDF).
To learn more about internship opportunities, visit the Office of Experiential Learning.