University of Wisconsin-Madison

The Kauffman Entrepreneurship Community Internship Program 2009-10

The Kauffman Entrepreneurship Internship provides UW-Madison students with the unique opportunity to become “social entrepreneurs.”  By utilizing skills and knowledge gained in the classroom and identifying projects in communities within Dane County and Ashland, Wisconsin UW-Madison students will be a catalyst for social change.  Projects can be of varying duration and internships may begin as early as spring 2010.

Who is eligible

Students
Registered UW-Madison students who have achieved junior, senior or graduate level status at time of application and who plan to work in collaboration with a community organization may apply. Applicants must have an overall GPA of at least a 2.0 (3.0 for Graduate Students) and be in good academic standing. Students must be officially registered during the duration of the internship. Only one application per applicant will be accepted for consideration. Group projects (up to five students) are accepted with a maximum award of $6500 for academic year projects (two semesters).

Community Organizations
Community organizations are (1) public agencies, including governmental agencies and the K-12 school system; (2) private, nonprofit organizations, including those working on issues of hunger and poverty alleviation, health care and related policies, the arts, criminal justice, environmental protection, and community development; and (3) private businesses and trade associations working on the issues listed above but also including economic development.

When

Group projects (up to five students) are accepted with a maximum award of $6500 for academic year projects (two semesters).

Internships are awarded for projects implemented during any one of the following periods: (1) Spring 2010, (2) Spring and summer 2010, the 2010-2011 academic year, (3) fall semester 2011 or (4) Spring semester 2011. Proposals are awarded based on a project proposal developed by the student in collaboration with a community organization. Internship projects involving collaboration with several organizations may also be considered.

How

Applications involve the following:

• an official application form (typed or clearly printed)
• an abstract of the project (200 typed words or less)
• a description of the project (no more than 5 typed double-spaced pages)
• a current student record from student center in “My UW”.
• letters of support from the community organization
• budget: an estimation of project costs and how these will be met

SUBMIT 7 COPIES OF THE APPLICATION MATERIAL (1 original and 6 copies)

Where

You can download and print the application

Deadlines

Deliver application material to the Morgridge Center for Public Service, 716 Langdon Street, room 154, Monday-Friday, 8:30a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Deadline: First Application period: December 11, 2009
                  Second Application Period April 23, 2010

Notification: TBA

Criteria

The proposal of not more than 5 double-spaced pages should include: (a) the purpose of the project, (b) a summary of major activities, (c) a time-line for completion, and a discussion of how the project will yield one or more of the following benefits to each partner: It should include: cost of travel, material(s), effective cost of what the community is contributing, etc.

Community:
Accomplish priority objectives; expand access to the university; expose community youth to university opportunities, contribute toward improving the quality of life for underserved, low income populations.

Student:
Gain experience applying skills and knowledge; gain experience with applied research; expand understanding of community issues; learn about project-related subject matter.

Letters of support:
These are required from the community organization. Letters should attest to the value of the project and should discuss the collaboration of all parties in its planning, implementation and evaluation.(It should also clearly discuss how supervision of the student activity will be handled.)

Time Frame
Feasibility of the project within the time frame and resources available must be clear. Other monetary or in-kind resources for the project should be noted in the proposal and verified in letters of support.
Proposals should be comprehensible to students and community organizations, and should demonstrate collaborative planning between student and organization. The final product, however, must be written by the student.

Criteria

For more information, please contact Ben Rodriguez, Assistant Dean of L&S (bhrodrig@facstaff.wisc.edu) , Professor Michael Thornton, Director of the Morgridge Center for Public Service (mcthornt@wisc.edu) or kauffman@lssaa.wisc.edu