NASCAR Diversity Internship Program news 2010-06-01

NASCAR Diversity Internship Program Enters 11th Year

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (June 1, 2010) -- Twenty-three students from across the United States have been selected to participate in the 2010 NASCAR Diversity Internship Program that starts today and gives minority college students the opportunity to complete 10-week, paid summer internships within the NASCAR industry.

Since its inception in 2000, interns have gained experience working in marketing, engineering, public relations, licensing, diversity and public affairs. Participation in the program has led to full-time positions in the industry for a number of past interns.

"The NASCAR Diversity Internship Program has introduced hundreds of students from diverse backgrounds to professional opportunities in NASCAR," said Marcus Jadotte, NASCAR's managing director of public affairs, who oversees the diversity department. "The program has played an important role in NASCAR's efforts to attract the best and brightest to our industry." The program features internships offered by NASCAR offices, sponsors, licensees, teams, tracks and broadcast partners. In addition to NASCAR and GRAND-AM corporate offices in Daytona Beach, Charlotte, New York, and Los Angeles, the following companies are participating in 2010: Roush Fenway Racing, The SPEED Channel, The 909 Group, International Speedway Corporation (ISC), Daytona International Speedway, Just Marketing International, Catalyst Public Relations and Octagon.

The current intern class began their NASCAR experience with an orientation session during the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. The group visited the new NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, NASCAR Research and Development Center in Concord, the Sam Bass NASCAR Art Gallery, Revolution Racing headquarters, and attended the NASCAR Sprint Pit Crew Challenge presented by Craftsman. In addition, the group met with a number of key people in the NASCAR industry including NASCAR Sprint Cup Series crew members, drivers, and NASCAR executives.

Each year, the internships are available to college sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduate students across the country. To be eligible, students must be in good standing with their school and community and have a minimum 3.0 grade-point average.

In addition to the internship program, NASCAR awards diversity scholarships in tribute to NASCAR legend Wendell Scott, has an at-track diversity mentorship program and a college tour that visits historically black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions. Attached is a list of the students and their colleges. More information on the internship program is available at www.nascardiversity.com.

-source: nascar