The College of Charleston's Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture invites students to participate in the Speaking our Truths: Heritage Interpretation Field School. This unique opportunity combines two weeks of National Association for Interpretation Certified Interpretive Guide training with experiential learning at local heritage sites and four weeks of paid internship in which participants apply their newly acquired interpreter skills and gain practical job experience at area museums, cultural centers, and/or historic sites.
The National Association for Interpretation - Certified Interpretive Guide training is designed for interpreters who want to learn more about the fundamentals of heritage interpretation. It covers the history, definition, and principles of interpretation; techniques to make interpretive programs purposeful, enjoyable, relevant, organized, and thematic; and teaches how to use tangible objects to connect audiences to intangible ideas and universal concepts behind the resources we care about.
The Heritage Interpretation Field School will incorporate 32 hours of Certified Interpretive Guide training during which particpants will write an interpretive program outline and, deliver a 10-minute interpretive presentation on a topic of their choice. After the successful completion of the field school participants will receive a certificate of interpretive guiding and a one-year professional membership with the National Association for Interpretation.
The Heritage Interpretation Field School instructors will lead participants on visits to heritage sites across Charleston County to demonstrate interpretive principles and techniques in the field, providing opportunities for experiential learning and science-based training in natural and cultural history of the South Carolina Lowcountry.
Cultural History - Field School Instructors will cover the impacts of rice, indigo, and Sea Island Cotton cultivation as well as the Trans Atlantic and domestic slave trades on the development of coastal Indigenous American and Gullah Geechee history and culture.
Natural History - Field School Instructors will cover native flora and fauna identification, interpreting coastal landscapes, geology and ecology; conservation as well as how to protect natural environments and the communities that rely on healthy ecosystems.
Site visits will include:
Heritage Interpretation Field School participants will be placed in 30-day paid internships at museums, cultural centers and historic sites around Charleston County. Internship host sites will be announced in February 2026.
Ideal candidates for the Heritage Interpretation Field School are youth ages 18-25 from underrepresented groups (African American/Gullah Geechee, Indigenous American, Latino/Hispanic, etc.) with an interest or background in history/public history, historic preservation, museum studies, earth science, biology (or related field). This includes incoming college freshman, undergraduate and graduate students.
Applications for the Speaking our Truths: Heritage Field School will open February 1st, 2026.
A stipend of $3,900 will be offered for 30-day internships. Field School partipants receiving stipends must intern at host sites 40 hours per week for four weeks.
The National Association for Interpretation defines interpretation as a purposeful approach to communication that facilitates meaningful, relevant, and inclusive experiences that deepen understanding, broaden perspectives and inspire engagement with the world around us.
Heritage Interpreters connect visitors to important natural, cultural, and historical resources at parks, nature centers, historical sites, aquariums, zoos, and anywhere that people come to learn about place or resources.
The Speaking our Truths: Heritage Interpretation Field School is a six week program which convenes May 18th through June 30th, 2026.
The Speaking our Truths: Heritage Interpretation Field School was made possible by a generous grant from the Institute of Museums and Library Services in collaboration with the College of Charleston's Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture, the Charleston County Park and Recreation Commission and the National Association for Interpretation.
