Indiana INTERNnet’s 2020 IMPACT Awards Celebrate Internship Success Across the State

(INDIANAPOLIS) – Both short-term individual internship achievement and long-term program success were on display Monday at the Ritz Charles in Carmel during the 14th annual IMPACT Awards hosted by Indiana INTERNnet.

“This year’s event not only spotlights the incredible opportunities created between students and employers, but also celebrates the milestone achievement where over 15,000 internships have been completed since the program’s inception,” said Lori Danielson, president of Indiana INTERNnet’s Board of Directors.

Indiana INTERNnet is a free internship-matching program managed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce that links employers, students, high schools, colleges, and universities.

Ten winners were recognized in the categories of Intern of the Year (college; high school, which featured a three-way tie; and non-traditional), Employer of the Year (non-profit and for-profit), Career Development Professional of the Year (high school and college) and Intern Supervisor of the Year. The winners were chosen from over 150 nominations.

A new special recognition, the David R. McKinnis Community Partner award, honored three programs that are working to better their communities by creating quality internships and experiential learning opportunities. McKinnis served as Indiana INTERNnet board president from the program’s 2006 affiliation with the Indiana Chamber until his retirement from Purdue University at the end of 2019.

The 2020 IMPACT Award winners are:

  • College Intern of the Year: Olatundun Awosanya (Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis)
  • High School Intern of the Year (three-way tie):
    • Zavion Herron(Center for Civic Innovation Notre Dame; Riley High School, South Bend)
    • Shelby Waligora (Community Foundation DeKalb County; DeKalb High School, Auburn)
    • Taylor Wylie (The Cedars Retirement Home; Woodlan Jr./Sr. High School, Allen County)
  • Non-Traditional Intern of the Year: Harini Kamalakkannan(The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis)
  • Intern Supervisor of the Year: Sonya Snellenberger-Holm (Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership, Fort Wayne)
  • College Career Development Professional of the Year: Abiodun Durojaye (Ivy Tech Community College, Valparaiso)
  • High School Career Development Professional of the Year: Brienne Sprunger (Garrett High School, DeKalb County)
  • Employer of the Year (For-profit): Intersection Advertising Agency (Muncie)
  • Employer of the Year (Non-profit): Indianapolis Airport Authority
  • David R. McKinnis Community Partner Award: Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership (Fort Wayne)
  • David R. McKinnis Community Partner Award: enFocus, Inc. (South Bend)
  • David R. McKinnis Community Partner Award: The Gregory S. Fehribach Center (Indianapolis)

The luncheon was sponsored by Ivy Tech Community College, with Gerry Dick of Inside INdiana Business as the event emcee.

Supporting the luncheon’s theme of “Celebrating Internship Excellence,” there were moderated conversations with several honorees on strategies for success, as well as a focus on best practices for both interns and employers.