A pilot program subsidizing 34 internships at more than 20 manufacturing and advanced industry companies in the South Bend-Elkhart, Ind., region is being hailed as a success.
On Thursday, the Labs for Industry Futures and Transformation (LIFT) Network, in conjunction with the South Bend-Elkhart Regional Partnership, announced the conclusion of the first year of the LIFT Network Internship Program, saying the effort would help attract and retain talent, an important goal for the region.
The program provided regional companies with lists of students sourced from area colleges and universities, or those returning home for summer. STEM and business undergraduate and graduate students found positions in manufacturing, technology, engineering, data science and analytics, software development, supply chain/logistics management, information technology, and research and development.
“One of the biggest challenges facing advanced industry employers in our regional economy is finding and retaining great talent to drive innovation within their firms,” said Leighton Johnson, South Bend-Elkhart regional partnership director of education and workforce. “Serving a region that contains more than nine colleges/universities and over 40,000 students, this internship program catalyzes professional relationships between regional STEM and business students and companies eager to retain them as full-time employees within the region.”
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