Students embrace chamber internships

A University of North Georgia (UNG) student and a recent alumnus have made the most of their internships with local chambers of commerce and begun to blaze their career paths thanks to those experiences.

Felipe Darquea, a senior from Gainesville, Georgia, pursuing a degree in political science with a minor in public administration and public service, parlayed his Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce (GHCC) internship in the summer and fall of 2025 into a full-time job during his final semester this spring.

Darquea is the GHCC Economic Development Council marketing manager, a role in which he bridges the gap between the public and private sector to promote economic growth. He originally found the chamber internship thanks to the advice of his UNG mentors.

"They encouraged me to take action to find opportunities rather than waiting for them to come to me," Darquea said.

He previously didn't know much about how chambers of commerce work, but his first project helped him learn quickly. He worked on an advocacy campaign promoting Hall County's Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) in the months before it was on the November ballot. The work involved monitoring public sentiment and making sure to tailor communication efforts toward meeting residents where they were.

After previously employment in food service and sales, GHCC marked his first internship. Thanks to a welcoming team at the chamber and his experience with Model United Nations under the mentorship of faculty adviser Dr. Bibek Chand, Darquea has shined as both an intern and now a full-time employee.

"These experiences have all worked hand in hand to get me where I am today," Darquea said.

Christen Wilbanks, GHCC vice president of member operations, was impressed with Darquea's ability to dive right into the work.

"It's always great when you have an intern who's willing to put their personality out there and interact," Wilbanks said.

Nicolas Carrasquero, a December 2025 graduate with a degree in marketing, worked an internship with the Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce last summer, and his experience inspired him to apply to the University of Georgia's (UGA) Master of Marketing Research program.

"I had enjoyed marketing research, but I didn't see a career for myself in that field until I did data analysis with the Forsyth Chamber," Carrasquero said. "That sparked interest in grad school. Everything came together because of the internship I had. I am thankful for the number of valuable connections and opportunities the chamber provided for me outside of school and in the professional world."

His internship came about after Dr. Ken Crowe, retired executive director of UNG's Cumming Campus, and Dr. Mohan Menon, department head of Marketing & Logistics, met with Amber Gaddis, Forsyth Chamber director of workforce development, about partnering to use Qualtrics surveys with UNG's assistance. Menon encouraged Gaddis to hire a UNG student as an intern who could be the liaison between the university and the chamber, and Carrasquero was selected from eight applicants.

Gaddis said it was a natural decision to hire Carrasquero as intern because he "was going to be a go-getter in whatever role we put him in." Carrasquero, a Lawrenceville, Georgia, resident, focused on encouraging Forsyth businesses to complete the chamber's workforce development survey.

"He helped us tell the story of why the survey was so crucial," Gaddis said.

One of the most difficult moments of the internship turned into a growth moment. Gaddis and Carrasquero quickly received hundreds of responses and were excited until they realized their survey had been hacked by bots.

"Nick wasn't frazzled by that. He reached out to his professor to figure out what went wrong and immediately went into troubleshooting," Gaddis said. "To see him turn that into an opportunity to learn how to get better information was very impressive."

Gaddis enjoyed seeing Carrasquero's connections with his professors and classmates, including Dr. Waros Ngamsiriudom, an associate professor of marketing who is mentoring Carrasquero.

"He felt very supported by UNG," Gaddis said. "That's setting him up for success in the future."

Bobbi Larson, associate vice president for community engagement, is hopeful other students will see the possibilities of internships or full-time jobs with local chambers.

"Chambers hire for positions that need expertise in a variety of disciplines, and UNG students and graduates can leverage what they have learned here to excel in these roles and make great connections for their future careers," Larson said.