Cumberland County Emergency Management Agency (CCEMA) is currently accepting applications for several part-time (up to 25 hours/week) interns. CCEMA and the prospective intern will agree upon the days and hours of work. These positions are available in spring, summer and fall semesters. Internships with CCEMA are paid at $15.53/hour. The primary work location will be 22 High Street in Windham, Maine with some remote work as approved by the internship supervisor.

Current Internship topics include: Public Affairs/Communications, Emergency Management, GIS, Cybersecurity and Education/Training. See descriptions below. Want to mix and match from these? Reach out to us about a most customized position based on your background and interests.

About Us:

• Cumberland County encompasses 28 cities and towns from Casco Bay to the Lakes Region, including Portland, the largest city in Maine.
• We provide a level of coordination, expertise and support to local/state partners, in the event of a large-scale disaster such as fire, flood, pandemic, hurricane, cybersecurity or terrorist attack.
• We maintain an all-hazards emergency management program encompassing mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery functions.
• Our Windham office is located inside a civil defense era bunker that is rich in history.

Internship Benefits:

• Interns can obtain valuable in-depth experience by developing projects related to their field of study and executing them with the support and oversight from the CCEMA staff.
• Internal mentorship with senior-level department and county staff.
• Participants may have the opportunity to participate in County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) activation in the event of an emergency or disaster.
• Access to emergency management training.
• Opportunities to attend exercises and planning sessions as schedules allow.
• Networking opportunities with stakeholders at the local, county, regional and state levels.

Primary Duties:

1. Public Affairs Intern
   1. To develop social media toolkits on emergency preparedness topics, to be used by municipalities and county agencies. Toolkits include messaging, social media graphics, pamphlets, posters, etc. and require comfort with graphic design. Graphic design software will be provided.
   2. Develop and host virtual/In person public engagement activities during the course of the internship.
   3. Attend CCEMA outreach events and provide informational materials and answer emergency management-related questions.
   4. Record and edit training videos with CCEMA instructors.
   5. Assist with employee and school preparedness programs.
2. Emergency Management Intern
   1. Develop and market emergency plans to local governments and guide them through the emergency planning process.
   2. Perform research and provide recommendations on ‘hot-button’ issues in Emergency Management to identify best-practice. Topics could include pandemic response, homelessness, infrastructure hardening, cybersecurity, etc.
   3. Creating After-Action Reports following real-world events or exercises.
   4. Assist in projects aimed at building real-world response capability.
   5. Assist in operation and deployment of special teams (Animal rescue, HazMat, Telecom, etc)
3. GIS Intern
   1. Research nationwide GIS systems and identify best practices to be applied locally.
   2. Identify and develop improvements relating to role of GIS in large-scale disasters.
   3. Conduct and participate in GIS-centric drills and exercises.
   4. Act as a subject matter expert relating to technology upgrades and physical infrastructure of county and local Emergency Operations Centers.
   5. Create and market GIS systems for emergency response for use in under-resourced local governments.
4. Cybersecurity Intern
   1. Design and create planning materials for Local and County government Cybersecurity Planning.
   2. Act as a subject matter expert for local governments making cybersecurity plans.
   3. Conduct and assess IT systems for vulnerabilities.
   4. Prepare and conduct training sessions on relevant Cyber topics.
5. Education/Training Intern
   1. Designing and creating training materials for community training courses (including instructor guides, student manuals, activities, and PowerPoints)
   2. Logistics in planning for training and delivering courses
   3. Designing and creating documentation for exercises consistent with the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) and tailored to Cumberland County
   4. Designing and carrying out a drill for County Organizations
   5. Designing and delivering skills labs and drills for CCEMA staff
   6. Script and plan training videos with CCEMA instructors.

Examples of additional duties may include:

• Researching grant funding opportunities and developing applications
• Research opportunities related to emergency management
• Providing assistance with exercise planning, conduct, and improvements
• Building and strengthening relationships with Whole Community partners

We are looking for interns who:

• Are responsive and motivated self-starters
• Will represent our office and the County professionally
• Are able to work independently with supervisor guidance
• Are comfortable and adept in meeting facilitation (in-person and virtual)
• Understand social media platforms and how public agencies use them for engagement
• Have a keen eye to detail and social media graphic design
• Have the ability to strategize and identify potential solutions for complex problems
• Have excellent written and oral communication skills
• Demonstrate an interest in emergency management
• Are proficient in Microsoft Office
• Minimum internship qualifications include a high school diploma, current enrollment in a college or university, and completion of two semesters of college coursework  

How to Apply:

Applications for these internships are accepted on a rolling basis at this link:

1. Applicants must complete the Cumberland County application and submit it to Human Resources.
2. Applicants must also submit a letter of interest and current resume. The letter must indicate the student’s current program year, an explanation of the student’s interest in an internship with CCEMA, and the student’s interest and ideas for public outreach.
3. If selected for the internship, a background check and fingerprinting will be required.

All new hires shall provide documentation to HR that they are fully vaccinated for Covid-19 before they are cleared to start work.  

Cumberland County is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected Veteran status.

To learn more about CCEMA, we encourage you to visit our website and social media pages (YouTube, Facebook and Twitter @ccemaready).

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