“Chesapeake Semester not only expands your knowledge of the Bay and its connecting people, places, and culture, but also expands your confidence level in a wide variety of ways. From speaking to people of the Chesapeake one-on-one, to having group conversations, to a final presentation in front of dozens of interested attendees, Chesapeake Semester prepares you for anything that may be thrown your way.

While I was a Chesapeake Semester participant in the fall of 2012, I was offered an internship at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. I had previously been offered this internship, but graciously declined it due to a previous internship acceptance. When Chesapeake Semester met with the CBMM employee who supervised the internship, I was offered the position again. If it hadn’t been for the Center for Environment and Society’s vast array of contacts and partnerships, I’m not sure that I would have been offered the internship a second time. Because CBMM was familiar with the Chesapeake Semester program, I began the internship with my coworkers already having a bit of trust in me and my knowledge of the Bay. Having covered many of the Chesapeake Bay’s major controversies and issues throughout the semester, I utilized educational, scientific, historic, and cultural perspectives to evaluate the museum’s exhibits. At staff meetings, I was able to contribute a lot of information, comments, and suggestions due to the multidisciplinary mindset I developed during Chesapeake Semester.

Many of the people and organizations we met through Chesapeake Semester work and partner with the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, as well as with many other regional programs and establishments. This proves that the people met through Chesapeake Semester are influential to the local community and are important for gaining a better understanding of Chesapeake culture. Chesapeake Semester has made me confident in my knowledge of the Bay and after graduating, I intend to pursue a career involving continued study of the Chesapeake Bay.