During the summer of 2019, I was selected for the Public Interest Internship Experience (PIIE) Program at the University of Colorado Boulder.
The CU Public Interest Internship Experience (PIIE) Program was established in 2006 to connect students interested in civic engagement with paid summer internships at non-profits and government agencies. PIIE was the first of its kind among public universities in the nation and has become increasingly competitive since its first summer. Now on its 13th anniversary, PIIE has provided over 100 internships in fields ranging from animal welfare to education, health, law, sustainability, and more.
University of Colorado Boulder Career Services
I accepted the position of Digital Storytelling Intern with the City of Boulder Communications Department. In this position, I worked three days a week with the Digital Content Team and two days a week with the Video Services team. Throughout my time, I collaborated with a variety of other departments at the City of Boulder including Police, Parks and Recreation and Open Space and Mountain Parks.
Photography
As the Digital Storytelling Intern, I developed visually engaging content to connect the City of Boulder to its publics. I attended and took photos of numerous events around the city. Click here to see my full photography portfolio from this internship.
Social Media
My photography was featured on City of Boulder social media platforms including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Nextdoor where it was seen by thousands of community members. Click here for a snapshot of my content on social media.
Video
The City of Boulder social media channels also shared my explainer videos, short-form videos and other media, such as a sound essay. For these videos, I used Animoto and Adobe Premiere Pro to edit. Click a box below to view.
Writing
Browse my writing and website copy by clicking a box below.
Responsible Recreation Campaign
My Responsible Recreation Campaign focused on safety and preparedness tips for outdoor recreation in Boulder’s open space. The first part of this campaign entailed an explainer video and website newsroom page detailing safety tips for recreating in Boulder’s open space.
The second part of the campaign focused on Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, an all-volunteer rescue agency that provides mountain search and rescue services throughout Boulder County and beyond. I created a short-form video featuring interviews and b-roll footage of Rocky Mountain Rescue Group in action, a website newsroom page and social media posts to promote the campaign.
In the first five days of the video going public, it was viewed 3,100 times for a total of 2,000 minutes of watch time, making it the city’s top-performing video of the year on Facebook (where it reached 50 likes and 60 over those five days). Additionally, the video received almost 90 likes and 20 retweets on Twitter. View the complete campaign plan and metrics below.
PIIE Project
Every PIIE student presented on their internship during one of the four PIIE professional development days throughout the summer. Browse my presentation below.
Other Projects
This doesn’t quite fit into another category, but I can’t forget to mention one of my favorite internship experiences: being asked to GoPro tubing down Boulder Creek for Tube to Work Day. I didn’t hesitate.
Leilani Osmundson 