After 14 years at Salida High School, Fred Maxwell has been selected to head the effort by Colorado Mountain College (CMC) to connect high school students with local businesses.
Maxwell, who’s experience teaching and coaching at Salida High School and serving as an adjunct faculty member at CMC, is uniquely prepared for his new job. As of Aug. 1, he’s combined his background to become CMC Salida’s full-time business internship coordinator.
Fred Maxwell is a new full-time staff member at CMC Salida working as the Business Internship Coordinator.
“Fred’s position is really focused on Concurrent Enrollment Program (CEPA) students and building a really robust partnership between CMC, high school students and local businesses. “Creating partnerships between students and local businesses is the primary focus of Fred’s role,” said CMC Salida Associate Dean of Academics and Student Affairs Rob Simpson.
Maxwell comes from a diverse background, both near and far. In Oregon, he taught wilderness experiential education before his 14 years with the Salida School District. Maxwell said before that, some of his earlier jobs included mountain bike guide and a wildland firefighter, where he worked on a hotshot crew as well as a helicopter rappel crew.
“Through my last 14 years of teaching and coaching experience, I have realized how all of my work experiences in my life have shaped me into the person I am now,” said Maxwell. “Each employment experience has added a perspective that allows me a deeper connection to myself and my current job. I am excited to help students create their own experiences at a young age through experiential work-based learning, which will allow them a deeper understanding of their career choice, their learning in school, and essentially who they think they are.”
Students and local businesses
According to a January 2022 U.S. News & World Report article, nationwide, business internships among high school students are becoming more prevalent. Once considered a resume-builder for college students, business internships give younger students opportunities to break out of the high school bubble to see what adult life is like. Students can also learn valuable job skills to decide if a certain career path is right for them. In Salida, that means high school students can try interning with a construction company, for example, or a doctor’s office to see if those career paths might make a good fit.
Simpson said CMC has run the internship program for the last two years with local businesses hosting interns. Past businesses involved in the program have included High Country Bank, Anderson Law Group, and First Street Family Health. Students have also interned at a kindergarten and at a veterinary clinic.
Now, Maxwell is looking for a wide range of local businesses interested in giving high school students new experiences as interns. He’s particularly interested in companies in the construction trades: contractors, carpenters, plumbers, and electricians, etc. as well as the health care industry.
Business internships are one semester-long, and require about 100 hours, which comes out to about seven hours a week. Students earn both high school and college credit while interning.
Businesses interested in CMC Salida’s business internship program are asked to contact Fred Maxwell at fmaxwell@coloradomtn.edu.
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