Common Cause-born partnership leads to pair of internships

Aden Ray walks along the Kanas River during a clean-up event in April 2023.

A goal of Common Cause, a year-long series of programming centered on an issue of shared concern, is to connect University Honors Program students seeking meaningful service and internship opportunities with partners on campus and in the community.

One such partner is Friends of the Kaw, an environmental nonprofit that strives to preserve the Kansas River through community outreach and service projects. Since an initial collaboration tied to KU’s 2022 Millenium Fellowship involvement, the partnership has flourished.

The most recent development took place during the spring 2024 semester, when two Friends of the Kaw internships were launched to give honors students the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in the nonprofit space. While their natures differed, the internships saw each student excel equally in their respective roles.

Testing the waters of a future career

For environmental studies major Aden Ray, a connection with Friends of the Kaw began when he participated in a spring 2023 river cleanup, part of that year’s Common Cause climate-focused programming.

That activity coincided with a crucial moment in Ray’s academic journey. At the time a sports management major, Ray was finding himself drawn to environmental studies — partly through his Common Cause involvement.

After hearing about Friends of the Kaw’s new pair of internships from student experience designer Dr. Mauricio Gómez Montoya, Ray immediately applied and was soon selected as their research intern.

Ray’s work with the organization, which mostly related to the Kansas River’s water quality, opened his eyes to other career possibilities.

"I’ve always had my mind set on working in outdoor recreation, but I've also discovered that a lot of the research I’ve done is fascinating to me,” Ray said. “I really want to attempt to combine activism and outdoor recreation in my future work to hopefully make the most difference.”

Ray ended the internship grateful for his experience, which included an encounter with a bald eagle during a 16-mile research expedition across the Kansas River by kayak. He also found himself inspired by the passion that organization leaders showed for their mission-based work.

“You can tell just by the way they talk—about the river or the ecosystem or their individual projects and efforts—they’re deeply invested,” Ray said. “I hope that’s an energy I can bring to my own work one day.”

Reaching out and stretching skills

When Angelina Kirton-Atkinson makes trips to visit her family in Panama, she often finds herself tapping into her graphic design skills.

“We have a lot of family events when I’m back home, so I’m normally in charge of making cards or invitations,” Kirton-Atkinson said. “It’s something I’ve always enjoyed doing.”

An environmental studies major, Kirton-Atkinson was on the lookout for an internship when she spotted the Friends of the Kaw opportunity in the Honors Weekly, an e-newsletter sent to the honors community. She reached out to Gómez Montoya and student experience coordinator Preston Braun, both of whom guided her through the application and interview process.

As Friends of the Kaw’s communications intern, Kirton-Atkinson captured the life of the organization across their social media platforms.

“I never thought about having a position like this,” Kirton-Atkinson said. “But it was a surprising way to combine my interests in the environment with graphic design, which is something I always just did for fun.”

She added that the position not only helped develop her creativity but provided her with perspective on using pre-existing connections to aid in finding an internship that’s the right fit.

“My search showed me it’s important to use your network and be proactive,” Kirton-Atkinson said. “At first, I was scared to reach out to Mauricio and Preston because I wasn’t sure how they could help me. But if it wasn’t for their encouragement, I may not have applied for this internship.”

Thanks to its success with Friends of the Kaw, the University Honors Program has established a model for community partnerships that encourage interdisciplinary exploration, service-based engagement, and professional development.

Moving forward, the program plans to partner with additional community organizations to develop experiences similar to Ray’s and Kirton-Arkinson’s that align with Common Cause, which next year will focus on the intersection of human rights and technology.