Fiona Schneider Internship
Psychology Major Selected for Prestigious Program
Fiona Schneider, a psychology major in Loyola University Chicago's College of Arts and Sciences, was selected as a summer intern to work for Youth Villages, a national nonprofit that helps young adults with behavioral and emotional challenges and their families live successfully.
This summer, Schneider is working on the Youth Villages residential campus in Memphis. Schneider, a Memphis, Tennessee, native, is scheduled to graduate from Loyola in May 2027.
A total of 92 college students from across the nation are trading in their classrooms and books for valuable work experience with their Youth Villages summer internships. This year’s internship class represents 48 different colleges and universities from across 15 states.
The Youth Villages summer internship program is highly competitive within the field, receiving an average of more than 600 applications over the last six years. For its 2025 summer internship program, Youth Villages had more than 950 applications. This year marks the largest class of interns since Youth Villages began its summer internship program in 2000.
"This incredible group brings fresh perspectives, energy and compassion that will leave a lasting impact on those we serve at Youth Villages," said Luke Self, managing director of recruiting for Youth Villages. "We’re excited for the growth they’ll experience as they build skills and deepen their understanding of behavioral health."
Summer interns will serve at the organization’s Memphis residential campuses and Nashville-area group homes. Hailing from degree programs in social work, psychology, education and more, interns will gain hands-on experience working with youth ages 6 to 17 by assisting them with positive development and implementation of individual goals; planning and leading recreational activities; and being a positive role model in demonstrating a healthy and wholesome approach to life.
"We hope this summer is just the beginning, and that many of these interns will choose to start their careers with Youth Villages in the future," Self said. “Hundreds of former interns have come back to work in full-time roles across the country after graduating. It’s one of our best recruiting tools.”
The program kicked off with a week-long orientation, team-building activities and a welcome party hosted by CEO Patrick Lawler and other Youth Villages executives.
To learn more about the Youth Villages internship program, visit youthvillages.org/internships.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 13 schools and colleges. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments, 31 interdisciplinary programs, and 7 interdisciplinary centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of university-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the university’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”
Fiona Schneider, a psychology major in Loyola University Chicago's College of Arts and Sciences, was selected as a summer intern to work for Youth Villages, a national nonprofit that helps young adults with behavioral and emotional challenges and their families live successfully.
This summer, Schneider is working on the Youth Villages residential campus in Memphis. Schneider, a Memphis, Tennessee, native, is scheduled to graduate from Loyola in May 2027.
A total of 92 college students from across the nation are trading in their classrooms and books for valuable work experience with their Youth Villages summer internships. This year’s internship class represents 48 different colleges and universities from across 15 states.
The Youth Villages summer internship program is highly competitive within the field, receiving an average of more than 600 applications over the last six years. For its 2025 summer internship program, Youth Villages had more than 950 applications. This year marks the largest class of interns since Youth Villages began its summer internship program in 2000.
"This incredible group brings fresh perspectives, energy and compassion that will leave a lasting impact on those we serve at Youth Villages," said Luke Self, managing director of recruiting for Youth Villages. "We’re excited for the growth they’ll experience as they build skills and deepen their understanding of behavioral health."
Summer interns will serve at the organization’s Memphis residential campuses and Nashville-area group homes. Hailing from degree programs in social work, psychology, education and more, interns will gain hands-on experience working with youth ages 6 to 17 by assisting them with positive development and implementation of individual goals; planning and leading recreational activities; and being a positive role model in demonstrating a healthy and wholesome approach to life.
"We hope this summer is just the beginning, and that many of these interns will choose to start their careers with Youth Villages in the future," Self said. “Hundreds of former interns have come back to work in full-time roles across the country after graduating. It’s one of our best recruiting tools.”
The program kicked off with a week-long orientation, team-building activities and a welcome party hosted by CEO Patrick Lawler and other Youth Villages executives.
To learn more about the Youth Villages internship program, visit youthvillages.org/internships.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 13 schools and colleges. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments, 31 interdisciplinary programs, and 7 interdisciplinary centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of university-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the university’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”