IC News

Isabela “Isa” Hernandez ’27 applied to intern with New York State Senator Lea Webb’s office in what she called “a shot in the dark.” The role, working with the senator’s community engagement team, drafting official responses, and assisting with public service requests, was a perfect fit for her interests in law, policy, and advocacy. But as soon as she got the offer, a bigger question loomed: How was she going to afford it?  

Enter the Ithaca College Internship Fund. Coordinated by the Center for Career Exploration and Development and made possible by donors like Jim Ragusa ’95, the fund helps students cover key costs—like housing, transportation, and meals—that can otherwise put life-changing internships out of reach.  

“I knew I couldn’t afford housing in the summer,” Hernandez says. “When I found out about the internship funding program and got approved, that was a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. And I thought, Okay, so I can do this.”  

She can—and she is.  

Now, with that support in place, Hernandez is gaining the real-world experience she came to Ithaca College to find. A double major in politics (with a concentration in international studies) and philosophy, she’s responding to community concerns, supporting legislative service efforts, and bringing fresh ideas to the table—like her proposal to add Hispanic Heritage Month to the office’s outreach calendar. (Her supervisors said yes.) 

Experiential learning, especially internships, matter. According to the 2025 National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) report, Impacts of Experiential Learning on the Gen Z Early Career Experience, students who complete internships receive more job offers, earn higher starting salaries, and report greater career and life satisfaction. What’s more, employers increasingly prioritize candidates with real-world, skill-based experience. Internships deliver exactly that.  
 
But while the need for internships has never been greater, access remains uneven. For many students like Hernandez, the biggest challenge isn’t finding an internship; it’s figuring out how to afford funding an unpaid or low-paid career opportunity. According to the 2025 Internship Index from Handshake, a leading career development platform, only half of recent college graduates report having completed an internship, often for financial reasons.   

“Internships are more essential to a college student's job placement and career success than ever before,” says Dave Curry, director of Ithaca College’s Center for Career Exploration and Development (CCED). “The more we can help our students obtain internships—and support them financially when they are unpaid or low paying—the more we are setting them up for success.”

Behind every CCED placement, along with the drive and ambitious preparation of IC students, is a network of campus resources, support and alumni who go out of their way to help. 

  “Supporting the Internship Fund is deeply meaningful to me,” says Jim Ragusa ’95. “My first job came through a connection the career center helped make, and that opportunity laid the foundation for everything that’s followed in my career. I work in a highly competitive industry, and the education and experiences I had at Ithaca gave me the grit, confidence, and grounding to compete at any level. Supporting this fund feels like coming full circle, helping students launch their paths the same way IC helped launch mine.” 

“I feel so very lucky,” reflects Hope Machlin ’27, a rising junior who is double majoring in economics and psychology, and another student spending her summer interning with New York State Senator Lea Webb’s office. Machlin is researching legislation, tracking local news, and engaging directly with constituents. 

It was Machlin’s previous internship that sparked her interest in policy. Through a work-study placement, she interned with Tompkins County’s government as an equity analyst: “I did a lot of research, some policy and legislation, and that was a really great experience. When that position started coming to an end, I wanted to find something like it. It felt like a very special college job to have.”  

Familiar with both the Student Employment Office and the Career Center, Machlin started browsing job listings and came across the opportunity with Senator Webb. Her supervisor, Hope Borsic, IC’s student employment specialist, had already introduced her to the fund. The CCED helped her navigate the application process. 

“Dave Curry was so kind and helpful,” Machlin says. “Once I had my offer letter, I had a lot of questions—and he walked me through everything. I couldn’t have done the internship without all of the support.” She also found encouragement from the team at Senator Webb’s office.  “Internships can feel intimidating and hard to get, but people kept telling me, ‘Just go for it. It’s going to be fun. It’s not as scary as you think.’ And they were right.”

This year, those kinds of doors are opening for so many IC students because of IC’s internship fund.  

Take Ari Barmak ’27, a politics and communications strategy and design dual major, who landed an internship with former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s office. “Day to day, I’m working on assignments like writing biographies for people Secretary Clinton is planning to meet, archiving some of her written material, and more. With IC's internship fund, the cost of transport is much more affordable and has really allowed me to focus on my work with Secretary Clinton.” 

 A journalism and economics major, Prakriti Panwar ’26 is interning at Forbes, where she’s learning how to make financial news more accessible through multimedia. “The Internship Fund helps me focus on giving my all at my internship, on learning new skills and creating meaningful journalism,” says Panwar.  “I’m excited to bring what I learn back to The Ithacan as editor in chief for this academic year. Leading that newsroom is something that’s really close to my heart.” 

As a Peter Roth Intern at the Paley Center for Media in New York City, Janelle Harris ’27 is gaining invaluable insight into both the business and creative sides of television. “An opportunity like this wouldn’t be possible without support from the Ithaca College Internship Fund,” says Janelle, who had meetings with Food Network stars and attended the Thirty Years of Everybody Loves Raymond tribute at the Paley Museum, among other exciting learning experiences. “I hope to pay it forward one day," she says.

As more students take advantage of the Internship Fund as well as the guidance available at the Center for Career Exploration and Development (CCED), the impact will only grow. Thanks to the generosity of alumni and the strength of the IC community, more students than ever can say yes to opportunities that may have seemed out of reach.