ABOUT THE FOUNDATION

Providing Meaningful Job Opportunities for Minority Students in the Communications Industry

Louis Carr Internship Foundation (LCIF) provides 10 paid internships in communications to undergraduate students of color during the summer immediately following their freshman, sophomore or junior year of college.

Louis Carr established the not for profit, 50l(c)(3) Foundation in 2003 to increase multiculturalism and diversity in the communications industry. A veteran of over 30 years in communications, Carr knew that segments of the industry such as advertising, marketing, public relations and media sales were slow to develop the multiethnic workforces which reflected the changing racial composition of the USA and the challenges of multicultural global markets.

To ensure more minority representation Louis Carr, President of Media Sales, BET Network, structured the LCIF intern program with a two-fold mission. First, LCIF internships would give highly motivated minority students, who could not afford to take non-paying summer internships, a chance to get career-building experiences in top communications companies while earning needed money for college. Second, LCIF internship program would help companies to identify, recruit, and maintain a more multicultural workforce.

Since the Foundation debuted its paid summer internships, there have been 103 interns.

The application period is from November 1st to March 1st. On April 20th the Foundation will announce the summer LCIF interns on this website.

ABOUT LOUIS CARR

Louis Carr is President of Media Sales for BET, the premiere media company serving African-Americans and those who consume Black culture. He is responsible for the strategic plans to generate revenue for BET, the company's flagship; Centric, their flanker network for a mature audience and BET.com, the largest portal for African-American content online. In 2003, he launched BET's Black College Tour for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Currently it is the largest Black college tour in the country visiting fourteen HBCUs. Mr. Carr's success at BET has made him one of the most influential African-Americans in the media and marketing industry. Prior to joining BET, he worked for Black Enterprise Magazine and Ebony Magazine. He started his professional career in the insurance industry.

Mr. Carr has served on several industry boards including the International Radio and Television Society, the Ad Council, the American Advertising Federation and the Cable Advertising Bureau. He credits much of his success on helping his team establish vision and goals for themselves in alignment with the company's objectives then guiding them toward great execution. Carr considers himself as a visionary with paradigm building skills. He not only sees the future but clearly knows the path to get there. His career has been documented for The HistoryMakers archive collection.

Just as important in his life is his mentoring and service to others. In 2004 he established the Louis Carr Internship Foundation which provides paid internships for students of color at some of the world's leading marketing and media companies. Mr. Carr started this foundation as an example of how an individual can contribute to improving diversity in corporate America. The foundation has provided over one hundered paid internships in 7 years. He also sits on the board of Boys Hope Girls Hope in St. Louis, Missouri which provides residential homes for students who show academic promise. He has been married to his wife, Diane, for 25 years.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Chairman: Louis Carr, President of Media Sales for BET Networks

Secretary: Diane Dinkins Carr , DDC Consulting Group Inc.

Joseph D. Abruzzese, President, Advertising Sales, Discovery Networks

Nia Batts, Director of Strategic Partnerships for Viacom Inc.

Jocelyn Brown, Founder, JB Investor Ventures L.L.C.

Raymond Goulbourne, Executive VP, Broadcast Advertising, BET

Kevin Newell, Executive VP and Global Chief Brand Officer, McDonald's Corporation

ABOUT NIA BATTS

Nia serves as Director of Strategic Partnerships for Viacom Inc., helping with operation strategy and planning for Viacom's marketing council, corporate responsibility council, and programming council. These internal organizations are meant to maximize all the resources and the marketing efforts of the entire company.

Internship

LCIF offers 10 paid internships in communications to minority students during the summer following their freshman, sophomore and/or junior year of college. The LCIF internships are full-time and run from the first week of June to August with starting and end dates depending on school opening dates. Interns are placed in prominent advertising, marketing, sales, public relations, media and other industry-related businesses in Chicago, Detroit, New York and Washington, DC . Housing and transportation in these cities are the responsibilities of the interns.

LCIF intern criteria:

• full-time minority undergraduate student in good academic standing
• current freshman, sophomore or junior when they apply
• major or minor in communications, marketing, advertising or public relations
• proactive and involvement in their community and extra-curricular activities
• highly motivated, quick learner and enthusiastic
• student has demonstrated a high degree of professional promise

LCIF interns receive:

• foundation orientation for LCIF corporate internships
• paid 8-10 week summer internships in advertising, marketing, sales, public relations, media or other communications related businesses in New York , Chicago , Detroit or Washington , DC . Interns are responsible for housing and transportation.
• a summer internship stipend of $4500.00
• career building, hands-on training and experiences that nurture their talents
• mentoring from seasoned communications professionals
• access to communications industry leaders

LCIF intern applications are available only online at the Foundation's website. The deadline to apply is March 1^st. The Board's Intern Selection Committee will review applications and select 10 LCIF interns. Only candidates considered for LCIF internships will be contacted by the Foundation for telephone interviews.

The 10 students selected as this summer's LCIF interns will be announced by April 20^th.

Donations and Contributions

Donations from generous individuals support the costs of stipends for LCIF summer internships in communications for undergraduate students of color. Each LCIF intern receives a summer stipend of $4500.00.

Please click here to contribute to LCIF intern stipends. All gifts make a difference.The Louis Carr Internship Foundation is a non-profit organization, tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Gifts to LCIF are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Thank you.

Partners

LCIF Corporate Internship Partners are prominent broadcast and print media, advertising agencies, corporate advertisers, public relations firms and other communications-related businesses that provide:

• 8 to 10 week summer LCIF intern positions
• structured internships that offers real-world work experience
• meaningful, skills enhancing work assignments
• nurturing and supportive work environments
• mentors who provide one-on-one career guidance

LCIF Corporate Internship Partners will receive from the Foundation:

• prescreened and qualified minority interns
• a coordinated mentor program
• funding for stipends of summer interns

LCIF Corporate Internship Partners support the Foundation by:

• providing a summer LCIF internship position and if possible also underwriting all or a portion of the LCIF Intern's summer stipend

Each sponsored internship allows the Foundation to serve more students of colors who dream of careers in communications.

Interested in becoming a LCIF Corporate Internship Partner? click here