CMC Salida selects Maxwell as business internship coordinator

After 14 years at Salida High, Fred Maxwell heads to CMC to connect high school students with local businesses

By Carrie Click

Fred Maxwell, who has experience teaching and coaching at Salida High School and serving as an adjunct faculty member at Colorado Mountain College, 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's position is really focused on concurrent enrollment students and building a really robust partnership between CMC, high school students and local businesses," said Rob Simpson, CMC Salida’s associate dean of academics and student affairs. "Creating partnerships between students and local businesses is the primary focus of Fred's role.”

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 US 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 a semester long, and are about 100 hours, which comes out to about seven hours a week. They earn both high school and college credit while interning.

If you and your business are interested in CMC Salida’s business internship program, contact Fred Maxwell.