Racial diversity in public garden internships
Date
2018
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Public gardens are in dire need of emerging professional horticulturists. The lack of people of color in public horticulture means the profession is missing out on a large segment of the nation’s talent and valuable perspectives and contributions to the profession. Internship programs are uniquely positioned to help fill the gap left by closing academic horticulture programs. Attracting and retaining public garden interns of color will help secure public horticulture’s future. ☐ Qualitative research interviews were conducted with nine public garden administrators and nine current or former public garden interns of color. Interviews explored administrator and intern perspectives on race and public horticulture and salient factors for internship success. Views and experiences of administrators and interns were analyzed with the goal of providing recommendations to create internship programs that better serve the needs of public gardens and interns. ☐ Differences in programmatic structure, beliefs about the exclusive nature of public horticulture, and actions taken to diversify their programs existed between urban and rural garden administrators. Urban garden administrators were more likely than rural administrators to take actions to recruit and select interns of color, cohost internship programs with a partner institution, and have programs focused on job skills. Interns of color had positive experiences with internships and interest in public horticulture careers. Interns were more likely than administrators to describe a racial division of labor at gardens. Interns reported their families did not understand their interest in horticultural careers, but were supportive of internships and assisted interns financially. Most administrators felt interns received a fair wage, but interns reported financial concerns during the internship. ☐ To gain the full benefits of a racially diverse workforce, garden leadership must prioritize efforts to create inclusive public garden culture and connect people of color with internships. Potential strategies to attract interns of color include programmatic changes including a focus on job skills and community outreach, internships cohosted with partner organizations, and targeted recruitment and marketing. Strategies to increase emotional and material support for interns may increase intern satisfaction and promote job placement and retention for all interns, not just interns of color. ☐ Keywords: Public gardens, horticulture, race, diversity and inclusion, internships, career development
Description
Keywords
Education, Career development, Diversity and inclusion, Horticulture, Internships, Public gardens, Race