From Internship to Initiative

00:00:00: Hello, I'm your host Adam Brunner and welcome to the Evonix Minute, your quick bi-weekly podcast for the important stories, news, and announcements for Evonix North America region.

00:00:11: The date is September eleventh, twenty twenty-five, and on today's episode, we have exclusive insights from our summer professional enrichment program as we hear from several of this year's interns about their experiences, takeaways, and advice.

00:00:24: That story coming up in just a minute.

00:00:35: This summer, Ivonic welcomed thirty-seven interns for an enriching twelve-week program.

00:00:41: The summer professional enrichment program, also known as the SBE program, provides college interns from across North America with the opportunity to gain valuable real-world experience at Ivonic.

00:00:52: These interns are not just filling roles, they're actively tackling real-world challenges and contributing fresh insights to our projects.

00:00:59: Each SBE intern engages in a variety of local and regional initiatives during their time at Ivonic.

00:01:05: This hands-on experience helps them develop practical skills and strategic thinking, equipping them with a wealth of experience in the chemical industry.

00:01:13: For instance, Lena Lopes held a diverse role during her internship at Avonix Allentown Pennsylvania site.

00:01:19: My main role was to help oil additives move from Horsham to Allentown Pennsylvania.

00:01:27: With this, I had to manage several projects such as process optimization, the design and implementation of AI programs, equipment installation, and also hazard review.

00:01:41: The SBE program offers college students a valuable opportunity to connect with industry professionals.

00:01:47: Logan Anguiano, an intern at the Tippy Canoe site in Indiana, who spent his summer developing a new methodology for reporting the missions, emphasized the importance of networking, and highlighted how these connections can provide valuable perspective for someone just starting out in the field.

00:02:02: Meeting other people and learning about their story and experiences helped me reflect on my own time at Ivonic and what I

00:02:09: want out of my career.

00:02:10: I also got to attend several coffee chats with the North American leadership team members and their stories spanning the careers really helped put things into perspective for me.

00:02:20: Andrea Fan served as a plant engineering intern working closely with the maintenance team at the Blair Nebraska site.

00:02:26: She expressed her appreciation for the warm welcome she received, particularly when she communicated her need for accommodations due to her different abilities.

00:02:33: This is my first ever experience in the industry.

00:02:36: I was really concerned declaring that I had a disability and declaring that I needed a little bit more accommodation.

00:02:41: However, my mentors, everyone on site were all very supportive.

00:02:46: So in terms of.

00:02:47: how everything was structured.

00:02:48: I would say Team did a really good job as well as a company making sure that I was comfortable and able to fully function and do my job and everything that was on the syllabus prepared for me.

00:02:58: Lily Von Feld interned at the Allentown Pennsylvania site where she focused on developing raw material qualification tools.

00:03:04: With the guidance of her mentors and the resources available to SBE program members at Avonix, she gained valuable insights into various career paths within the industry.

00:03:12: On the mentorship side, I think this program did a really great job because I had my direct supervisor that I reported to that I was able to work with extensively throughout the summer, but I also had a lot of other people that were able to give me support.

00:03:28: I was able to just learn so much more about what's out there and also different career paths that people have taken.

00:03:34: It was just really great.

00:03:36: It felt very welcoming that everyone wanted to give me advice and answer all my questions.

00:03:42: When asked what advice the twenty twenty five interns would offer to anyone entering the SP program for next year, Marissa Fow, who worked in the Environmental Safety Health Department at the Blair Nebraska site, shared these insights.

00:03:53: I definitely would say to kind of just jump in as fast as you can, because that's how you're going to learn.

00:03:58: Like if you have downtime, go up to the control room and just like shadow the technicians.

00:04:02: I did that towards more the end of my internship, and I wish I had done that more at the beginning because I feel like I would have understand the process a lot better.

00:04:08: And because the technicians have no have such so much knowledge, like they're the.

00:04:11: running the planet like every day and so making those connections with them because then they're more willing to like answer questions you may have or help you with any projects you're working on.

00:04:19: so definitely that's something I would advise and then take advantage of any like networking opportunity you have.

00:04:25: The summer professional enrichment program at Yvonic goes beyond just technical skills.

00:04:29: It focuses on building connections, gaining diverse experiences, and preparing for future careers.

00:04:34: Recruiting for next summer's SPE program will take place this fall with interviews scheduled for early next year.

00:04:39: So keep an eye out for more information if you or someone you know might be interested in becoming an Yvonic intern.

00:04:47: And that's the news.

00:04:48: I'm Adam Brenner.

00:04:50: Thank you for spending some time with us today on The Yvonic Minute.

00:05:00: Leading beyond chemistry.