ILR High Road Ithaca Fellowship
Tompkins County Food Service Directors

ILR High Road New York is statewide program that aims to teach ILR students practical methods for civic & community engagement and leadership. The High Road Ithaca Program offers students paid community engaged internships with partner organizations committed to social and environmental justice, diversity and equity, access and education in Ithaca and surrounding areas during the fall or spring semesters. Students work 5-10 hours a week and participate in critical reflection activities throughout the semester.

Our sponsoring organization are public school districts that operate a Child Nutrition Program under the federally funded National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, administered by the United States Department of Agriculture. The Food Service Department functions as a district department responsible for menu planning, food procurement, meal preparation, food safety compliance, and regulatory reporting.

The department employs food service managers, chefs, cooks, and support staff who serve nutritious meals to UPK–12th grade students across multiple school buildings. We serve a diverse community of students and families throughout the county.

This remote internship provides hands-on experience in human resources development within a K–12 public school nutrition program. The primary focus will be reviewing, updating, and standardizing job descriptions across multiple districts to ensure clarity of essential functions.

Working virtually, interns will draft and revise job descriptions; develop standardized interview questions for various food service positions; and create a comprehensive, scalable onboarding framework. The onboarding project will include virtual orientation materials, onboarding checklists, training timelines, compliance documentation guides, performance expectation outlines, and evaluation tools designed for consistent implementation across the county.

Interns will collaborate remotely with food service leadership through scheduled virtual meetings, shared digital (Google) workspaces, and document review platforms to ensure all materials are practical, compliant, and aligned with operational needs.

The primary focus of this internship is workforce development systems design. The intern will work directly with food service leadership to:

• Develop a job description for Food Service Helper roles that accurately reflects operational needs, required skills, and advancement pathways
• Create a structured onboarding process that improves training consistency, employee readiness, and retention

• Successful interns in this remote placement should demonstrate strong written communication skills, attention to detail, and the ability to analyze and organize information clearly and professionally. Because the internship focuses on job descriptions, interview development, and onboarding systems, interns should have foundational knowledge of human resources principles, including job analysis, competency-based hiring, and best practices in employee onboarding.

• Strong research skills, the ability to synthesize feedback from multiple stakeholders, and comfort working independently in a virtual environment are essential. Interns should be proficient in common digital collaboration tools (e.g., shared documents, video conferencing platforms) and able to manage deadlines with minimal supervision.

• An interest in public sector employment, workforce development, or organizational systems is beneficial. Familiarity with compliance-driven environments or regulated programs, such as the National School Lunch Program, is helpful but not required. Professionalism, discretion with sensitive information, and a collaborative mindset are critical for success in this role.