EO to lead internship development program

A new statewide initiative is connecting Southwest Virginia businesses with emerging talent at the region’s colleges and universities.

The project, InternshipsVA, is administered through the Commonwealth Innovative Internship Fund and Program, also known as the Virginia Talent and Opportunity Partnership. Since June 2025, the Virginia Economic

Development Partnership has handled the employer-facing side of the program, while the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia has retained student-facing duties. In reallocating the employer-side responsibilities, the General Assembly also gave VEDP $6 million in fiscal 2026 to generate more paid internships for undergraduates and directed it to coordinate with regional partners that could better engage with potential employers.

Based on its experience with high school internships, VEDP chose EO, an Abingdon-based nonprofit spinoff of the United Way of Southwest Virginia, to facilitate the program in GO Virginia regions 1 and 2, which cover Southwest Virginia and the New River and Roanoke valleys. EO announced the program in October 2025, and work on the program began immediately, including hiring a regional internship manager, EO President and CEO Travis Staton said in mid-November.

“We want to retain young folks and professionals in Virginia,” says Staton. “We want to increase labor force participation and build those talent pipelines. And ultimately, we want to win higher-paying jobs.”

These issues are a tough row to hoe. In June 2025, the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service noted the region is “on track to have 100,000 fewer residents by 2050 than it did in 2010,” a 25% decline. But for Staton, these challenges create opportunities.

“When more students walk across that stage and they complete that four-year or master’s degree or doctorate degree,” he says, “we have to show them that they can remain in the commonwealth.”

Toward that goal, EO’s role in the program includes helping companies identify 8-week, 120-hour internship opportunities, connect with students, track the program’s results and more. Employers of 150 people or fewer can also apply for an Innovative Internship Fund matching grant of up to $7,500 to help pay each intern.

“The No. 1 question for economic development is, ‘Where’s my talent?’ especially in rural Virginia,” VEDP Senior Vice President Megan Healy says. “This is a really great tool to say we can connect you to the community colleges, the universities, to help with your talent pipeline.”