The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA), in collaboration with the Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs, is accepting applications for 30 summer 2016 environmental health interns sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Local, state, and tribal environmental health departments are eligible to host students from accredited universities and colleges for this National Environmental Public Health Internship Program.

Participation contributes to the recruitment of highly trained professionals in environmental public health practice, as well as adds to health department capacity at no additional cost. National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council academic programs can offer guidance to those new to creating environmental health internships.

Once interested health departments have applied and are accepted, they will be matched with qualified students who apply for the internships in the spring. NEHA will award students a stipend of up to $4,000 for completing a 10-week internship. An additional stipend is available to cover some of the relocation costs.

Last year was the first year for these CDC-supported internships in environmental health and 12 interns were placed in health departments throughout the United States. Interns were involved in a wide range of activities including studying contamination levels of surface and ground water, building tracking initiatives, asset mapping, and creating key stakeholder databases.