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More than a summer internship: Students and employers celebrate the success of ProX

ProX students stand on a stage holding an oversized check made out to Lead to Read for $5,000 grand prize.
The ProX student showcase culminated in awarding six student intern groups with cash prizes for presentations and exhibits related to their five-week internship experiences. The Lead to Read KC intern team earned first prize in the exhibit category, which included, from left to right, Amelie King, St. James Academy; Nedra Seigfreid, Truman High School; Lauren Somogye, Blue Valley Southwest High School; and Amina Mbengue, Academie Lafayette. They were joined by, from left, Missouri State Senator Shalonn "Kiki" Curls, event judge; Esther George, former president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and Kauffman Foundation Board Chair, event judge; Troy Vanatta, Ewing Marion Kauffman School and Lead to Read KC sponsor; and Dr. Darren Woodruff, senior director at The DeBruce Foundation, event judge.

The ProX student showcase brought together interns, employers, and the community to reward the growth and learning gained through the completion of the six-week professional experience.

Written by Amy Unruh

Hundreds of local students – prepped for a moment in the spotlight – participated in the ProX student showcase at the Kansas City Music Hall. Nearly 2,000 community members were in attendance to view the final presentations from ProX summer interns who each spent the last six weeks working on a client-connected project with Kansas City employers.

At the capstone student showcase, the interns presented the result of their projects as an exhibit-style presentation for judging or as a pitch-style competition in pursuit of a $5,000 top prize. Lauren Somogye, a senior in the class of 2023 from Blue Valley Southwest High School, produced an exhibit with three other students based on their internship project with Lead to Read KC.

“I’ve always wanted to be a teacher and just wanted to get involved in education,” Somogye said. “The variety of experiences I received from interning with Lead to Read KC was a really good opportunity to do that.” She said it was rewarding to learn about the education profession from a nonprofit organization.

“I just fell in love with it,” she said. “I discovered that it’s everything I want in a career.”

The feedback we get from students is consistently supporting the idea that summer experiences are shaping their decisions about working in Kansas City in the future, and doing so in many positive ways.

— Michael Robins
ProX Program Director

Career direction and professional experience are desired outcomes for the ProX program, Program Director Michael Robins said. “This program has the opportunity to change the lives of high schoolers in Kansas City – and support our future workforce,” he said. “The feedback we get from students is consistently supporting the idea that summer experiences are shaping their decisions about working in Kansas City in the future, and doing so in many positive ways.”

Robins believes the earlier students can get involved, the more opportunities they will have to explore career options or experiences.

Amina Mbengue, a freshman at Academie Lafayette, worked alongside Somogye at Lead to Read KC. The ProX staff and coaches try to place students in internships with students of various ages and from different schools to promote city-wide connections.

“ProX Summer is a great gateway to try new things and new experiences,” Mbengue said. “It’s a good way to enter the field and see what you can learn. I gained a lot of valuable experience, especially for someone at my age, and that was a great opportunity.”

ProX is a regional collaborative that gives access to real-world professional experiences in the summer by offering paid internships to students aged 14 to 19. This summer, more than 600 high school students participated in internships with more than 125 employers in the Kansas City area.

“The ProX program removes barriers for students who might not be able to access internships this early in life,” Robins said. In just the second year, ProX saw a 66% increase in participation. Along with matching students with area employers, the program also meets individual needs that might prevent a student from participating or completing the program.

ProX Summer is a great gateway to try new things and new experiences. It’s a good way to enter the field and see what you can learn. I gained a lot of valuable experience, especially for someone at my age, and that was a great opportunity.

— Amina Mbengue
Acadamie Lafayette Freshman

“We worked with many students who let us know they needed help with transportation or with getting the clothes they felt were needed for work,” Robins said. “We worked with partners to provide extra support because we don’t want anything to keep a student from getting this experience.”

At the close of this summer’s program, Robins and the ProX staff are proud of everything students accomplished – from preparing resumes, participating in workshops, and working with the program’s 25 coaches who provided support and instruction along the way – not to mention completing the five-week internship.

“We are extremely happy with the increased participation, and fully expect enrollment to be up even more in 2024 – that’s good news for students and for Kansas City,” Robins said.

About ProX

Momentum is growing across our region for connecting students with real-world learning experiences; however, both educators and employers want more help to get started. ProX is a Real World Learning initiative providing summer professional experiences for high school students. It provides an ideal time for focused learning and capacity building while creating paid opportunities for students to earn Market Value Assets (MVAs), learn essential skills, and build social capital. Learn more at proxsummer.org.

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