My name is Kristin Clark and I am a junior (Class of 2023) exercise science major at the University of Vermont. I am originally from Weathersfield, Vermont, but currently live in Burlington to attend school. After graduating, I hope to attend a New England graduate school to pursue a degree in Occupational Therapy or Physical Therapy. I am specifically interested in working with children in my future career.

I applied for the Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports internship because I felt that the work aligned in many ways with my future career interests. I had also had previous experience working with participants at Vermont Adaptive through an adaptive physical activity course project at UVM, and had greatly enjoyed it. I was an intern at Bolton Valley for the 2022 winter ski season. In this role, my largest responsibility was being an instructor on participant ski lessons with other volunteers, sometimes even leading lessons. Other responsibilities included opening, closing, and managing the office when Molly was off, and managing volunteers to place them with their assigned lessons and solve any problems that arose. I learned many crucial field skills throughout this internship, but my biggest takeaways were communication, critical thinking, and leadership skills. Throughout the internship, I learned how to more effectively and clearly communicate directions during lessons and problem solve/think critically when unique barriers arose. I also gained new leadership experience by managing volunteers, which helped me to develop important interpersonal, communication, and organization skills.

My most notable moments have to be my well-known struggle with the shed locks and the time I got absolutely shown up by an athlete during a bike ride, when I could not keep up with his speed and had to turn around and lay down because I was so tired. Overall, this internship has been an amazing experience where I have made so many long lasting connections and memories. I had so much fun, met so many great people, and learned so much. … Thank you so much to Molly, who has been a great leader and role model for us!

To learn more about the internship program or apply to become one, click here.