Rock Island Today

Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce Inc issued the following announcement on July 21

Autumn Buesking had never even heard of the Quad Cities before landing a structural engineering internship at IMEG Corp. Now the Missouri University of Science & Technology senior has her sights set on the region – and IMEG – as the place to begin her civil engineering career next May. 

“I love it here: the diversity, that there is so many cities, and so many things to do,” Buesking said. “There’s something for everyone.” Buesking is among 40 college interns employed at 20 regional businesses who are getting the Quad Cities experience this summer through InternQC, a talent attraction program of the Quad Cities Chamber. 

“InternQC provides a unique opportunity for student interns, employers and the entire Quad Cities region,” said Kristin Glass, the Chamber’s Chief Strategy Officer. “By connecting future talent to the quality of life our community has to offer, it is our hope that they will be eager to call the Quad Cities home upon graduation. This helps local employers find talent and helps accomplish the Chamber’s goal of growing the region’s population. It’s a win-win for all.”

Buesking and several of her fellow InternQC members credit the program with pushing them out of their comfort zones to adventure out, meet and network with fellow interns, and explore the Quad Cities’  quality of life. 

“I’ve been here since I was 8 and I’ve seen more of the Quad Cities this summer than ever before between my internship and InternQC events,” said Bret Knous, who along with his twin brother Luke, are among four interns at Grace Technologies. “I’d only explored about 20% of the Quad Cities.” The Grace interns include three Iowa State University seniors – the Knous brothers and Jacob Laufenberg, who all hail from the Quad Cities and all play in the ISU Marching Band, along with Connor Meehan, a University of Michigan mechanical engineering student.

“I’m from a smaller town outside Ann Arbor (Mich.) and I see all the cities outside the Quad Cities are like my hometown,” said Meehan. “The Quad Cities definitely is on my radar now. If I get an opportunity through Grace Technologies, I’ll definitely pick it up.” 

The program, which offers meet-up events at various Quad Cities hotspots, also helps promote local businesses with gift card giveaways and promotional emails. “I’ve got to see stuff I’ve never had the chance to do – or was too lazy to do,” said Laufenberg, who is working a marketing/sales internship at Grace. Through InternQC, Laufenberg and other interns have enjoyed a night at TBK Sports Complex, an outing at The Forge putting course at Palmer Hills Golf Course as well as other popular nightspots.   

InternQC also is offering a unique experience to Gerry Anne Hayes, a 2021 St. Ambrose University graduate from the Chicago area. As the Chamber’s marketing and events intern, she has had the opportunity to coordinate InternQC putting skills in event planning, promotions and communications to work. “Obviously, we want to keep the interns here to build our workforce,” said Hayes. “I definitely see some of these people staying here.” 

Living Lands & Waters (LLW) interns Megan Shanafelt and Sydney Becker have had more exposure to the Quad Cities festivals, organizations and activities than most. Affectionately known as “the Bison girls,” one of their duties is hauling a life-sized fiberglass bison around the Quad Cities to promote LLW’s idea to repurpose the Interstate 80 bridge across the Mississippi River into a national park – known as Bison Bridge -- where a herd of bison would roam.

“InternQC is what we were looking forward to the most,” said Shanafelt, whose uncle is LLW’s founder Chad Pregracke. “We go to so many cool events for our work, but we don’t get to mingle with people our own age,” said Becker, a 2021 graduate of Southern Illinois University – Edwardsville. But through InternQC events, the best friends who live in southern Illinois outside St. Louis, Mo., are meeting fellow college students and forging new friendships. Shanafelt, a 2020 Illinois State University graduate, now is thinking about a career in the Quad Cities although her family is trying “to pull us back home.” 

As summer and their internships come to a close, Becker said “It’s good to see everybody hustling trying to get real adult jobs.”

Original source can be found here.