Ryan Sancilio, an intern at Inlet Grove, worked alongside Mr. Lopez during the summer.

Ryan got in touch with Dr.Banks to ask if there were any room for an Intern.  “Inlet Grove has never had an intern before, but I wanted to work there. So I jumped on the opportunity” said Ryan. Sancilio’s resume was passed onto Mr. Lopez, where an interview was set up.

“I took the internship to learn more about the nonprofit sector and how a nonprofit organization is managed and run,” Sancilio said. “I recently graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a bachelor’s in Public Administration and a minor in nonprofit management. As a student studying these fields, I felt it necessary to learn about both nonprofit management and education.”

 Opportunities that truly can change your life are fleeting, and you need to jump on them and be motivated when you see one, Sancilio said. “If you don’t chase opportunities and exposure to new things, the rest of your life can be impacted, and you’ll be left with so many “what if’s.” What if I just talked to that successful-looking guy and asked him what he does.”

During the internship, Ryan’s job was: helping coordinate the COVID response and to gather and interpret data; such as the surveys that were sent out to students and parents over the summer. 

“The internship was required to complete my program for my minor in nonprofit management,” Sancillio said. “What was not required, however, was completing it at the inlet grove. I chose to go to the inlet because I wanted to learn about a field that I did not have any previous experience in. This was to increase my knowledge in the field and become a well-rounded citizen able to make impactful decisions that have a positive impact on my fellow citizens.”

The lesson from the internship was about how a nonprofit organization is run, Ryan said. The main thing that Ryan learned was how to increase efficiency and effectiveness on a budget. “I learned a lot about emergency management and planning with regard to education.”