Enlightening summer internship gives insight on library careers

By Katie Oechsle

As a book lover and an advocate for public access to information, I have set my sights on public librarianship. Libraries are a vital resource to every community, providing spaces to gather, learn, and simply be. To gain valuable experience early in my college career, and to take advantage of my Nazareth SPARK Grant, I completed a 3-credit summer internship at local libraries. The SPARK Grant is awarded to every first year student and transfer student and must be used within your first two years at Naz (within 12 months for transfer students). I chose to use mine to turn my unpaid internship into a paid one.

How I found it: Through speaking with current and retired librarians, I learned that each public library operates differently, serves different communities, and provides different experiences. With this in mind, I reached out to a few local branches to inquire about internship opportunities. Through some discussions between both libraries and with my career coach, we madea plan for me to split my eight-week internship between two branches. For four weeks, I was at the Irondequoit Public Library in the children & teens’ department. Then I spent four weeks at the Penfield Public Library, supervised by an adult services librarian.

Buttons for Penfield library teen program

Professional boost: In addition to participating on-site for the internship, I completed a 3-credit course online. The course activities helped me to grow my professional communication skills, understand what I find valuable in a place of employment, and reflect on my experience in a meaningful way. Furthermore, I was able to use the knowledge gained through my internship course to add more value to my work at the libraries by being more present and mindful about my career goals.

Juneteenth book display at Irondequoit library

What I gained: Both experiences were enlightening and valuable; each providing me with new perspectives on the career. At Irondequoit, I was able to get some great hands-on experience with creating programs, displays, informational guides, and engaging with kids of all ages. At Penfield, I worked quite a bit “behind the scenes” — cataloging, processing new books, and learning about the details of material circulation. I was there during the popular annual summer reading programs, which can be a hectic time for the library staff. This timing gave me a great chance to be involved with the community and help contribute to the overall success of the programming. I gained clearer ideas about what my future career will look like and how the career may change with advances in technology and the ever-evolving internet.

Teen book display at Penfield library

Public libraries and academic libraries serve as strongholds of community and culture. Some people believe that libraries will become obsolete, yet I firmly think that libraries will endure for as long as they have people who need them, which there will always be. My experience this summer cemented my passion for fostering safe and comfortable spaces for people of all walks of life and I hope that I can follow in the footsteps of my fabulous mentors.

Katie Oechsle '26 is an English major with a Spanish minor.