The Cook Family Foundation wants success for both our best nonprofits and for our best students. We support community organizations through the NonProfit Capacity Building program, and we provide scholarships to the University of Michigan for graduates of Shiawassee area high schools. We also bring these two program efforts together by supporting internships in Shiawassee County through our Cook Fellows summer program.
Our goal is to bring talented young people back to our Shiawassee community for a summer’s employment in between their semesters at the University of Michigan. This helps nonprofits by providing them with the best and the brightest to work on a definable project, and helps students by giving them an opportunity put their skills to work, learn more about their community from a new perspective, and gain additional financial support for their continued education. During the summer, fellows will have the opportunity to connect and network with one another through informal gatherings and one service event. Each year the summer looks a little different depending on the cohort, but it’s an impactful experience no matter what. You can read more about the experiences of previous Fellows on this page (click here).
Summer 2026 Fellows Opportunities & Applications
Below are the nonprofits in Shiawassee County with open positions for hosting a fellow for Summer 2026. View the Intern Description via the pdf under each nonprofit in the link and reach out to the corresponding contact to apply; reach out to the contact for internship questions as well. All employment and hiring decisions are determined by the nonprofit.
Below are the participating nonprofits for Summer 2026. Click the nonprofit to view their website and click the second link to view the fellow description.
- Shiawassee Regional Chamber of Commerce – SRCC Fellows Job Description – to apply email your resume to customerservice@shiawasseechamber.org with subject CFF Fellows Position at SRCC
- Shiawassee Health and Wellness – Community Engagement Fellows Job Description – to apply submit your resume, cover letter, and a brief statement outlining your interest in the Community Engagement Fellow position to cbarnett@shiabewell.org with subject SHW Cook Fellows Community Engagement Position
- Shiawassee Health and Wellness – IT Support Technician Fellows Job Description – to apply submit your resume, cover letter, and a brief statement outlining your interest in the IT Support Fellow position to cbarnett@shiabewell.org with subject SHW Cook Fellows IT Support Position
- Shiawassee Economic Development Partnership – SEDP Fellows Job Description – to apply email resume to Justin Horvath at jhorvath@sedpweb.org with subject CFF Fellows Position at SEDP
- Shiawassee County Health Department – SCHD Fellows Job Description – to apply email resume to Nicole Greenway at ngreenway@shiawasseechd.net with subject CFF Fellows Position at SCHD
- DeVries Nature Conservancy – DeVries Fellows Job Description – follow instructions in job description to apply
- Memorial Healthcare – Memorial Clinical Research Fellows Job Description – submit an online application here to apply
- Durand Chamber of Commerce – Durand Chamber Fellows Job Description – follow instructions in job description to apply
If you don’t see a nonprofit in which you are interested and have a specific interest in Shiawassee County, please reach out to Rachel Osmer at rachel@cookfamilyfoundation.org. We might be able to get you connected with a local nonprofit with an area that you are more interested in.
For Nonprofits
We believe that a substantive internship with a community organization can be an important part of a college student’s education. These Shiawassee students attending the University of Michigan are among the most talented young people from our county and you should expect them to be independent, intelligent, and curious employees. Please think of an internship experience that is definable, can be completed in a summer’s time frame, and gives them the opportunity to interact and learn from your staff, volunteers, and community partners. You should look at testimonials from former interns to get an idea of the kind of experiences students are seeking (click here).
If you are interested in having an intern, please write up a position description that explains the opportunity and outlines the benefits of working with your nonprofit. Forward the job description to the Cook Family Foundation (contact us) and we will circulate it to current University of Michigan students. Provide contact information in the internship posting so that students can apply to you directly.
Internships should be for a minimum of 35 hours a week for at least 10 weeks; the nonprofit and the student may wish to extend this engagement. Students should receive at least $18 per hour for their work. The Foundation is offering a grant of up to $6,000 to a nonprofit willing to offer a local University of Michigan student an internship; the nonprofit will need to provide additional funds to support employment of the student. The nonprofit is responsible to act as employer, provide supervision, and comply with all applicable laws. If you are interested in hosting a fellow, and you are a nonprofit in Shiawassee county, please reach out to Rachel at rachel@cookfamilyfoundation or 989-725-1621.