Sustainable Sciences for Youth
(Youth Advantage!) Internship
About the Internship
About the Internship
It is a hands-on, interactive internship that educates and trains elementary, middle and high school students on skills related to sustainable agriculture, healthy nutrition and the cultivation of a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) garden. These skills include basic gardening, the use of age-appropriate power tools, setting up of garden apparatuses, harvesting and so much more.
Through their active participation in the internship, high school seniors who have also registered for college are able to earn a college scholarship.
One of FECH’s goals is to prevent substance misuse in youth. A core FECH principle is that substance misuse can be prevented in youth by providing them opportunities to do skill-building work alongside mentors who are both knowledgeable in sustainable agriculture and are positive examples to them.
The internship is provided on Wednesdays from 3:30PM – 7:30PM at the FECH Program Site, Hale Tuahine. It runs for 12 weeks mainly during the spring (starts late January through early May) and fall (starts early September through early December) and some summer semesters. At each session, students will be able to assist with the harvesting for the CSA basket sales (which occur each Wednesday) and are provided dinner.
About YA! Internship Facilitator, Norman Tansey
In addition to being FECH’s President, Tansey wears a lot of “hats” for FECH including being FECH’s main presenter and the facilitator of the YA! Internship. Tansey brings in a lot of experience, fun and energy as a longtime agriculturalist and former FECH volunteer. He is also an avid soccer player and coach.
How to Participate:
Parents/guardians of the prospective youth participant must complete a registration form and provide the $100 registration fee each semester. This payment can be made via cash or check (addressed to FECH).
Please stay tuned to the registration period for the upcoming semesters by signing up to be a part of our FECH Ohana:
Youth Participant Feedback
Youth participants completed a photovoice activity with FECH Evaluator, Kelly Grace during the Fall 2024 semester. As they shared their experiences in the internship, Grace recorded their feedback and summarized them in a FECH Progress Evaluation report she completed in March 2025. This image is a word cloud or compilation of the feedback received from the youth on their internship experiences.
Image courtesy of Kelly Grace
