Beyond the Gates: Wintermission Internships
During Wintermission, more than 33 students participated in internships that extended the educational opportunities of this special term beyond the bounds of campus. Whether interning at an elementary school classroom, a non-profit organization, or at an animal hospital, students gained real-world experience in fields of their choosing.
The following are excerpts from pieces by several of those interns. Click the title of each to read their entire piece.
Throughout our time there, we saw an owl get put under for an x-ray, a surgery on a hawk, and an eagle that came in for lead poisoning. Out of all of these, I really enjoyed the hawk and the eagle. The hawk was brought in because it ran into a window and dogs attacked it. It had multiple puncture wounds all over its stomach but mainly its throat.
I spent my Wintermission at the MARE Center in Middleburg working with Dr. Sally Johnson who is a Virginia Tech Animal Science professor. Dr. Johnson has been doing research at this center for the last five years. This year she and her two graduate students started a new project, focusing on how thoroughbred horses’ behavior changes during a race as they are getting exhausted. This research was inspired by the high number of racehorses dying at California race tracks during 2019. The main reason the horses died was that they were exhausted, but kept on going and their jockeys did not realize the problem until it was too late and the horses collapsed on the track.
Before this week I had completely underestimated how much I learned in fourth grade. The fourth-graders were learning about storms, the difference between hail and sleet (which I don’t even know), the Virginia government and the three branches, how to do long division, and how to write a compare and contrast essay. In their Virginia government class, the students were in the middle of a project where they got to create their own nation. The children were very excited to tell me all about their nations which they were so thoughtful about creating.
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An all-girls boarding and day school in Northern Virginia, Foxcroft prepares young women in grades 9-12 for success in college and in life. Our outstanding academic program offers challenging courses, including Advanced Placement classes and an innovative STEM program. Our premiere equestrian program is nationally recognized, and our athletic teams have won conference and state championships. Experience the best in girls' boarding schools: visit Foxcroft.
