Willimantic, CT — INROADS was founded in 1970 by Frank Carr, and the non-profit organization has spent more than four decades since making strides “to develop and place talented minority youth in business and industry and prepare them for corporate and community leadership.” The INROADS vision goes hand in hand with Eastern Connecticut State University’s mission to promote diversity and graduate student leaders.
INROADS has an ongoing relationship with Eastern in which students who have a GPA of 3.0 or higher and two or more years left before graduation can contend for highly competitive internships. While these internships are difficult to obtain, they have a track record of preparing students for future employment, evidenced by the 18 percent higher retention rate of INROADS graduates compared to the average intern. Even internships that don’t lead to employment still serve a valuable purpose. By helping interns become acclimated to the world of business, INROADS prepares them for the rigors of corporate America.
Cliff Marrett, interim director of the Center for Internships and Career Development, pointed out the importance of the organization’s efforts at Eastern. “INROADS participates in all of our on-campus recruitment initiatives, such as internship and career fairs, employer information tables, club and organization hosted events, summer presentations to students in STEP/CAP (Summer Transition at Eastern Program/Contract Admissions Program) and other employer-sponsored events,” he said. “This is a great partnership with a great program that is working hard to help students find excellent opportunities.”
By providing a platform that employers can use to find qualified, dedicated interns, INROADS is able to continuously create opportunities for Eastern students. In addition to the long-term employment potential created by multi-year internships, INROADS interns can receive free tutoring, scholarship opportunities and invaluable networking while continuing to work on earning a college degree.