Fifteen college students arrived in Cooperstown May 29 to begin a 10-week study in a variety of disciplines at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum as members of the 2012 class of the Frank and Peggy Steele Internship Program for Youth Leadership Development. The Class of 2012 includes Lindsey Hale, a junior at the University of Virginia and a Glen Allen native, who is interning in the Hall of Fame’s education department in public programs.

Now in its 12th year, the Frank and Peggy Steele Internship Program for Youth Leadership Development program offers college undergraduate and graduate students an opportunity to work alongside museum and library staff members to gain hands-on professional training in a field that closely matches the student’s major.

In addition to completing 40 hours of work each week, interns will participate in a number of career seminars during the 10-week program on topics such as networking, public speaking, resume and cover letter writing, and creating an innovative leadership style. In addition, every intern will host artifact spotlights – brief public presentations with in-depth stories about items in the museum’s collections – in the museum throughout the summer.

In all, 15 students hailing from 15 universities will intern for museum departments, including collections, curatorial, education, special events, membership, photo archives, public relations, library research and library recorded media,. The 15 interns were selected from more than 500 applications from students nationally, with the program concluding Aug. 3.

The internship program began in 2001 and has since welcomed more than 270 interns in an experience made possible by Peggy Steele, who endowed the program in honor of her late husband, Frank, and in his commitment to fostering education and leadership development. Applications for the 2013 Frank and Peggy Steele Internship Program will be available beginning this fall at http://www.baseballhall.org