Internship Packet

Overview of the City of Palm Beach Gardens 


The Garden City

 

On March 20, 1959, John D. MacArthur, multimillionaire insurance magnate and landowner, announced plans to develop approximately 4,000 acres and provide homes for 55,000 people in a new community. The land would be developed under his careful supervision. Mr. MacArthur's chosen name for the city was Palm Beach City.
 
 However, permission to use that name was denied, so MacArthur, in keeping with his "garden city" plan, decided to call the city Palm Beach Gardens. He wanted this new city to be a place to raise a family and earn a living - to realize the American dream. With this in mind, he set to work carving the City of Palm Beach Gardens from empty miles of dairy cattle grazing land.

Mr. MacArthur envisioned the city streets lined with trees and flowers. Millions of dollars were wisely invested by MacArthur to create a Florida community with hundreds of waterways, rolling terrain, magnificent mature pine and shade trees, and rich foliage. Because Mr. MacArthur was a lover of trees and Mother Nature, he instructed that city streets and construction go around trees that had been growing there for many years, such as the Banyan trees. This made for an expensive proposition but he wanted to build a city that was entirely new and unblemished. Churches were the first buildings to be built in the city. He wanted to ensure that the city had a variety of houses of worship to serve residents of all faiths.

 

By 1964, Mr. MacArthur was satisfied with the industry and recreation in Palm Beach Gardens. He heard that the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) was looking for a new site for their home offices and golf courses. MacArthur donated more than $2,000,000 to the project.

 

In March 1965, the clubhouse was completed and the PGA moved in. Several PGA tournaments, including the Seniors and the World Cup, were hosted by the city in 1971, but the relationship would not last. In 1972, the PGA moved from the property that would become the J.D.M. Country Club and today is known as BallenIsles.
 
 The City of Palm Beach Gardens has grown steadily during its forty years in existence. In 1999, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation sold approximately 14,000 acres of land including approximately 5,000 acres in the City of Palm Beach Gardens. The City Council, entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring quality development, was able to reach an agreement with the purchasers to manage this new growth.

 

Through the cooperation of the parties involved, the reputation and beauty of the City of Palm Beach Gardens will be preserved and enhanced by keeping in mind the "garden city" philosophy of its founder John D. MacArthur. The City of Palm Beach Gardens remains a premiere community. As our city slogan suggests, the City is "A Unique Place to Live, Learn, Work and Play".

 

Goal

 

The City of Palm Beach Gardens understands that working with an intern is both a privilege and a responsibility. Interns can strengthen the department they are involved with by providing additional resources, using current educational thinking, and enthusiasm. 

 

The City of Palm Beach Gardens can gain assistance and support at a time when the population is growing. An intern brings a new perspective, and the vibrancy of a person learning a new field. An intern brings needed diversity. Interns are accustomed to learning, writing, researching, and producing work on a schedule. 

 

The City of Palm Beach Gardens goal is to have the student learn as much about the business of the department they are interning in as possible. Therefore, a supervisor will take some time to visit with the student regularly, check on the development of a project list, and provide instruction. This direct conversation and project management will allow the student to move from the book learning to real-life experiences to give the intern as many experiences as possible. Staff who work directly with the intern will observe the students’ performance and note any areas where improvement is needed through ongoing performance feedback meetings. 

 

Mission


 The mission for the City of Palm Beach Gardens Internship Program is to create long-term benefits for the participating departments and interns. The departments receive the opportunity to work on special projects that they, in most cases, are unable to act upon due to time and budgeting constraints. For the interns, this program offers hands-on experience with the usage of practical applications that are in place to educate them on the various aspects of City administration. In addition, the interns become better equipped at making daily managerial decisions, which benefits them in their professional and educational careers.

 

The City of Palm Beach Gardens recognizes the importance of customer service in government and are interested in students with a similar commitment to the provision of excellent service. High ethical standards are a requisite for any employee at any level of the organization.

 

Our mission is to provide internships that enhance students’ educational objectives, strengthen 

career awareness, and promote public service for the City of Palm Beach Gardens. 



Qualifications

 

The participating intern must be enrolled full time or part time at an accredited university or college. He/she must be classified as an Undergraduate/Graduate student; and provide an unofficial transcript and resume. The intern must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.5 on a scale of 4.0.


The participating intern may also be a high school student enrolled in the Palm Beach County School District’s Student Cooperative Work-Based Experience/Internship Training Program, and provide all completed documentation required by the program.



Dress Code

 

Interns are expected to dress and groom in a neat, clean and businesslike manner consistent with their interning department, their work requirements and work location that demonstrates pride in their jobs. As an intern for the City Palm Beach Gardens, you should always remember your appearance is not only a reflection of yourself, it is also a reflection of the City. Courtesy, appearance, body language and manner are all important in projecting a positive professional image. In addition, proper clothing is necessary for safety and protection. If the City provides a uniform, interns will be required to wear the uniform while working. 

 

Interns will be issued an identification badge. Identification badges should be worn/displayed at all times while interning with the City of Palm Beach Gardens. 

 

Work Schedule

 

The City of Palm Beach Gardens primary interest is to ensure that the student’s education is a coequal priority. Work performed in the student’s internship should not negatively impact the student’s academic progress and academic qualifications by the assigned work hours. Student may work a maximum of 28 hours per week during regular academic sessions. If additional hours are required by the university/college for the internship program, approval may be granted by the Department Administrator and Human Resources Department.  The students interning supervisor shall establish the hours of work, considering the functions and operations involved. 



Intern’s Responsibilities

 

  • Provide college/university advisor contact information to Intern Supervisor.
  • Attend and complete any training programs. 
  • Adhere to the policies and duties outlined by the City of Palm Beach Gardens.
  • Perform work assignments to the best of ability. 
  • Help provide public information. 
  • Assist staff in the day-to-day operations. 
  • Answer inquiries by phone and through written communications. 
  • Prepare documents and reports. 
  • Assist with research assignments and special projects. 
  • Show initiative and creativity. Offer ideas and suggestions on program improvements. 
  • Attend meetings or community events. 


City’s Responsibilities

  • Provide interns with an atmosphere in which they will develop their professional and personal growth. 
  • Facilitate the transition from classroom to the professional world.
  • Assist intern with developing internship goals and objectives.  
  • Confer with the intern at least once a week to arrange schedules, discuss work performance and to correct any problems that may arise.  
  • Inform the intern of all personnel policies and procedures.  
  • Assist the intern in meeting their specific university requirements if the internship is used for college credit. 
  • If required, evaluate the intern’s performance and submit the results on the forms provided to the university’s internship coordinator.  
  • Provide intern with educational/training opportunities. 

Provide a wonderful opportunity to develop that first, and possibly career-long relationship, with an individual who cares about and is committed to their success. 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

1. Is this a paid or unpaid internship? 

Yes, this is a paid internship program. 

 

2. How long is the term of the internship program? 

The term is to not exceed six (6) months. It works to accomplish the requirement for your internship hours as well as to provide support to the office on a weekly basis. 

 

3. What is an average day like for an intern? 

Some days are busier than others. One day you may have a meeting in the morning, an ongoing project you are following up on all day, project deadline meeting in the afternoon, phone calls to forward or respond to, and research to conduct. 

 

Another day you may have a very slow day. Not as many phone calls coming in, no meetings and possibly only one project to work on. Every task that is done is important in one way or another. Every day you learn something new and gain experience and networking contacts that will help you in the organization. The office is a team environment. There is always someone to help answer questions you may not know the answers to, and encourage you along the way. 

 

4. What kind of projects might be asked of me? 

There are number of projects that are ongoing such as: spreadsheet updates, correspondences with internal and external people and organizations, data entry, as well as other projects.


Why Do an Internship?

 

EMPLOYMENT: Students completing internships stand out when job hunting due to their on-job experience. 

 

TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR LEARNING: Internships are important and valuable because the student can design their own learning curriculum and get away from campus‐based ones. The student decides what he/she will learn, how to learn it, and how to evaluate it. 

 

THEORY INTO PRACTICE: An internship experience can add meaning to academic study by giving you the chance to apply theories learned in the classroom to "real world" situations. 

 

AWARENESS THROUGH INCREASED COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: The student will develop an awareness of others' needs and a great understanding of his/her role and potential contributions to society. 

 

PERSONAL GROWTH: The student will grow from the experience. Having to solve problems in unfamiliar situations can increase a student's self confidence and self‐esteem. 

 

HELPING HAND: It is nice to help one‐self but helping others benefits the community and makes a difference. 

 

NEW ENVIRONMENT: An internship introduces the student to a new environment and the challenges and problems of a work setting. The student will also learn the meaning of teamwork. 

 

RESEARCH: It's an opportunity for experimentation and exploration of new and old, academic and career interests. 




For more information please contact:


Toni Russo, Human Resources Coordinator

Phone: (561) 799-4226

Email