Written by Doane's Office of Strategic Marketing in partnership with 雀巢雀巢Purina宠物护理.
麦肯齐的画家, 一个工科学生, hadn’t intended to pursue an internship between her sophomore and junior years at 澳门威尼斯人网址. 作为一名排球运动员, she sustained a devastating knee injury and was looking at a summer of heavy rehab before returning to the court for the fall season.
But she had wanted to gain experience in mechanical engineering — which was the focus of an internship recently established between Doane and its 克里特岛, 内布拉斯加州的邻居, 雀巢雀巢Purina宠物护理.
“凯尔(Stolle, associate professor of engineering] contacted me about this internship and said I was his number one recommendation,画家说.
That internship was several months in the making, after Dan Neil joined in fall 2022 as factory manager of Purina’s 克里特岛 manufacturing facility. 尼尔联系了澳门威尼斯人网址的教职员工, 包括斯托尔和克里斯·布雷迪, 战略伙伴关系总监, on opportunities for the two long-standing 克里特岛 institutions to provide support to each other and the community.
“We’re both dedicated to the city our facilities, associates and families have called home for decades, and what better way to show that than helping our current and future associates gain skills and opportunities to learn,尼尔说。. Purina will celebrate 60 years in 克里特岛 in 2025 and Doane recently celebrated 150 years.
例如, Purina sponsored a Back-to-School 社区 Picnic held on Doane’s campus on August 1, which provided over 400 bags of school supplies to area students. 在澳门威尼斯人网址, Purina managers will participate in a half-day leadership training session on the university’s campus. Doane has robust leadership development programs, including its Master of Arts in Leadership and the Hansen Leadership Program for undergraduates, that shape the curriculum for its non-degree-seeking professional learning opportunities.
Along with creating a paid summer internship program with Doane, Purina also built a student sponsorship program with Southeast 社区 College (SCC). The program covers tuition and fees at the school alongside a full-time salary as an automations/controls technician.
“We’re interested in not only hiring top-quality associates but also building them up. Partnering with Doane and SCC is a great way to help our greater community, by providing paid work experience as students pursue their education,尼尔说。. “And we benefit by connecting with dedicated students eager to learn on the job and use their knowledge for real-world applications.”
简而言之，这就是画家的写照. She developed a love of math and problem-solving at a young age but hadn’t identified engineering as a career path until enrolling at Doane.
“在我和凯尔的迎新会上, he explained the whole idea behind engineering and all the opportunities in the field. This interaction was really a selling point for me as I love the satisfaction that comes along with solving a problem,”她说。.
That satisfaction was also something she got to experience during her internship with Purina. 整个夏天, Painter was assigned one main project — redesigning a space in the plant to provide more access and ensure safer working conditions — and three smaller projects.
“The most affirming part of engineering is watching your project being implemented. 设计过程可能很长. 然而, as you see your design actually being built, that is what makes the work fun and rewarding,”她说。.
Taking charge of a major project was a little nerve wracking, though. 作为一名年轻的工程师, she was anxious about making the right decisions while designing and communicating with contractors. But she found that her colleagues at Purina were supportive and encouraging in not only her ideas and designs, but in establishing her as part of the team.
“On Fridays, we went to City Slickers in Dorchester for burgers,”她说。. “This time with my colleagues has made me feel welcomed here at Purina.”