EIU Media Relations

EIU wins IBHE grant to support rural community health via paid interns

(Charleston, IL)  – Eastern Illinois University has been awarded $44,500 in co-operative work-study grants from the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) to provide compensation to students in health internships in rural counties across East Central Illinois.

With support from the grant, EIU is able to place 10 students with partner organizations serving Clark, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Jasper, Lawrence, Richland and Wabash Counties as interns assisting in meeting those communities’ local rural health needs. The program provides compensatory support for EIU’s student interns, who work in those communities as they complete degree requirements and prepare to enter the workforce. 

“This grant does more than provide our students with critical on-the-job training—it invariably supports the healthcare system in and around EIU’s primary service region,” said Dr. Nikki Hillier, Internship Coordinator and faculty member in EIU’s Department of Health and Nutrition. “Both nationally and here in Central Illinois, the health care industry is primed to hire qualified students—especially in and across our rural communities. EIU reliably and proactively responds to our own regional workforce needs by offering affordable, accessible healthcare degree programs, and through opportunities like these internships and things like EIU career placement assistance programs. We thank the IBHE for their support of this important program.”

Program leaders Dr. Suzie Park, Assistant Vice President of Academic Affairs, Ms. Colleen Kattenbraker, Internship Coordinator for Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, Dr. Mark Kattenbraker, Chair of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation, and Hillier believe the program, titled “Working for a Healthy Rural Illinois,” will have a tremendous impact on its students—especially economically disadvantaged learners who otherwise may struggle to find internship placements that can support them near the end of their higher education journeys. The grant combats what program leaders had categorized as an “unfortunate” trend that saw talented candidates unable to take unpaid internships while also balancing the responsibilities of their EIU coursework, other paid jobs, or their own children or families.

Whether students are selected for internships at advocacy and counseling centers, rural county public health departments, family fitness centers, local regional hospitals, or local Parks and Recreation Departments, grant recipients—the interns—gain valuable skills, particularly in management, education, and outreach to communities. Student interns work with non-profit and governmental agencies with which EIU has long-established relationships.

Partners with EIU on this public health internship initiative include Sarah Bush Lincoln, Charleston Parks and Recreation, the Douglas and Edgar County Health Departments, and Prevail IL—a domestic abuse counseling, advocacy, case management, community education, and prevention service headquartered in Charleston.