APPLICATIONS FOR SUMMER INTERNSHIPS OPEN FROM
JANUARY 17 – FEBRUARY 28.
We are a Right Track YJ1 host site, to participate in the Urban Roots summer internship apply for Right Track, YJ1, and select Urban Roots at the Job Fair.
Apply for the Summer Internship Program
Are you 14-18 and looking for a fun and engaging job experience working outside and in your community! Apply to work at Urban Roots for a chance to work in our urban gardens, kitchens, and local parks while building 21st century job skills, learning more about environmental issues and creating a positive impact on your community!
Youth Internship Program
- Work 9 weeks generally beginning the third week of June
- Opportunities to continue working during the school year
- Earn $13.50/hour
- Work in 1 of 3 programs: Market Garden, Cook Fresh and Conservation
- There are opportunities for advancement each year you participate
- SEED CREW
- First Year Position
- Work 15 hours a week learning job skills and knowledge in one of three programs
- Entry job skills training in resume writing, financial literacy, searching for jobs
- GROW CREW
- Second year position
- Work at least 18 hours a week
- Apply skills to program specific activities and serve in mentoring role to seed crew youth
- Eligible to participate in our youth council
- HARVEST CREW
- Third year position
- Work up to 22 hours a week
- Take on an increased leadership role in your crew
- Participate in off-site career connections
- Crew Lead
- Fourth year position
- Work 32 hours a week
- Serve as a leader of your crew
- Take on special program responsibilities and projects
- Students ages 14-18 (as of our June start date)
- Students who live or go to school on the East Side of Saint Paul receive preference
- Students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch
- Students who are NOT enrolled in summer school are given first preference
- Students who are excited to learn and are looking forward to working hard outdoors
We are a Right Track program partner which has two hiring round each year, one for summer internships and one for school year internships.
Steps for summer internship
- February 1-28th: Fill out the Right Track Application for YJ1 to see if you qualify. Right Track Application
- March: Attend a workshop hosted by Right Track to prepare your resume and get tips for participating in a job interview
- April: Attend the Right Track job fair and select Urban Roots as one of your top choices. Later in the month we will contact you for an interview.
- May: If offered a position you will need to fill out payroll and hiring paperwork
- June: Begin Working!
Steps for school year internship
- In August or early September reach out to David <dwoods@urbanrootsmn.org> or Jacylne <jjandro@urbanrootsmn.org> to learn if there are openings and how to apply.
Work in 1 of our 3 Programs:
Market Garden
Youth in the Market Garden paid internship program participate in small- scale crop production at our urban gardens while exploring food justice, science, food stories, and histories. Interns are given space to discover who they are and who they want to be while cultivating a relationship with food, the land, and our community. The produce we grow is shared with the Cook Fresh program, sold at Mill City Farmers Market, and distributed to community hunger relief efforts on the East Side of Saint Paul.
Cook Fresh
The Cook Fresh program explores food and cooking through the interconnected lenses of land, identity, and community. Interns engage with each stage of the food system—growing, preparing, and sharing food—while building essential cooking skills and reflecting on the cultural and social significance of what we eat. Through hands-on kitchen work, weekly discussion groups, and fieldwork, the program fosters a deeper understanding of food justice, sustainability, and the power of food to shape community.
Conservation
Conservation youth interns support and improve green spaces around the East Side and participate in the restoration of local parks through removal of displaced plant species, native seed collection, and installation of native plants. We teach hands-on skills through the installation and maintenance of rain and pollinator gardens in public and private spaces. Youth also engage in citizen science projects, such as insect surveys, water sampling, and forest inventories.