Caroline Castle, a Charleston, WV native and student at the University of Tennessee, interned two back-to-back summers with ZMM. She attributes her internship experience to being more prepared for her return to the classroom. “It really helped me going back into my next semester and helped me refocus my priorities to become a better designer. I have learned a lot here that I am not going to learn in school.” Caroline appreciates seeing design work happening in the community. “I get to see the things go up and know what’s happening and talk to the community of people that are being affected by these projects. That is something that I am really excited about. Going into a school building that this firm has built and seeing the kids’ reactions, hearing from the community, and all of the excitement is fulfilling.”

Owen Farrier is also a two-time intern for ZMM from Blacksburg who attends Virginia Tech. His first job was as an intern at ZMM at the age of 17. “I was really nervous. As soon I walked through the door, everybody was willing to help. It felt right.” Owen says that he feels at home at ZMM and appreciates being heard. “Everyone cared about what I had to say, what I was learning, and what I was doing. I had a lot of questions to start. Very quickly, I learned that it didn’t matter what I was asking, everyone was here to help.

Claire Fulks from Ona, WV is not new to internship experiences, but last summer was her first interning with ZMM. She appreciates the support and valuable experience she’s received. “Everyone has been welcoming and helpful. I feel like I’ve learned a lot. It’s the best internship I’ve had by far.” Claire has enjoyed working alongside other interns and professional staff. “I like how they’re taking us places and we get to see more than just the design aspect of architecture. We get to see biddings and pre-construction meetings and I’ve been able to be involved.” Claire has continued to work part-time for ZMM after her summer internship.

Marshall Villers, a student at Marshall from Winfield, WV, shared about working on projects as an intern, “they focus me, and time seems to fly when I work on them.” His favorite project was the Montgomery County School Bus Garage parking lot. “It was the first place I got to go. It was really cool to see the project through from beginning to end.”