Two Shaw University Students Accepted into NCDHHS Experiential Internship Program

Shaw University students Vanaia Diggs and Chakhia Booker have been selected for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ (NCDHHS) 2025 Experiential Learning & Opportunity Internship Program (ELOIP), a paid summer initiative focused on workforce development in public health and human services.

Diggs will work with the NCDHHS Division of Public Health, while Booker will intern with the Division of Child and Family Well-Being. Both 10-week internships incorporate project-based learning, seminars, presentation practice and a culminating immersion event designed to strengthen skills in problem-solving, collaboration, data analysis and project management.

“One of my priorities is to build a sustainable workforce that supports a healthier North Carolina,” said NCDHHS Secretary Dev Sangvai. “The young professionals joining our team are helping us create a more prosperous state for the next generation as we work to protect the health, safety and well-being of all North Carolinians.”

The ELOIP is a paid summer internship and a component of the department’s workforce development initiative to provide for the growing number of residents in North Carolina by increasing the number of professionals that support the state’s systems of care, including health educators, social workers, nurses, environmental health, management and leadership, health promotion, behavioral health and other areas in human services.

The NC Department of Health and Human Services manages the delivery of health- and human-related services for all North Carolinians, especially our most vulnerable citizens — children, elderly people, people with disabilities and families with low-income. The department works closely with health care professionals, community leaders, advocacy groups, local, state and federal entities and many other partners to make this happen. The department is divided into 33 divisions and offices. NCDHHS divisions and offices fall under six broad service areas — Health; Opportunity and Well-Being; Medicaid; Operational Excellence; Policy and Communications; and Health Equity. NCDHHS also oversees 14 facilities: developmental centers, neuro-medical treatment centers, psychiatric hospitals, alcohol and drug abuse treatment centers and two residential programs for children.