For the second year in a row AFCOM Potomac Chapter, supported by NOVA through the Go VA DEEP IET grant, put students through a 10 week summer internship program. The objective of the internship is to engage undergraduate students from multiple disciplines having them observe and assist with projects within the data center community.

This year 12 interns participated, with 8 of them coming from the NOVA Data Center Operations Program (DCO). AFCOM has increased the number of internships offered year over year and won national recognition from AFCOM National at Data Center World 2021. By supporting the internship project, companies can actively participate in bringing up the next wave of talent in data centers. “We will be continuing this annually to help introduce and drive young talent into the data center space,” said Stuart Dyer, Global Data Center Strategy and Planning, IBM, and AFCOM Potomac Chapter Director of Scholarships & Internships. “Students return to school armed with good references, and a solid foundation of influence, and in some instances, land jobs with their sponsor companies.”

Additionally, AFCOM gives annually to the DCO program through the Wendy Darling Scholarship. This year AFCOM increased its support to $20,000 for course scholarships. “With NOVA sponsoring our internship program, it completes the circle of investing in these students’ future in the data center industry” said Dyer. This year’s donation demonstrated AFCOM’s commitment and support to making the NOVA DCO program a top generator for talent for the Data Center industry.

AFCOM, the interns and their partners celebrated the successful completion of the internships and the generous donation at Top Golf in Ashburn.

AFCOM is a professional association proven to advance the career of IT and data center professionals. For over 40 years, they’ve been educating, connecting & lifting our members to help them meet the growing demands facing the IT and Data Center industry.

More about AFCOM here