Intern Reflection: Meredith Luchs

Meredith Luchs started as an RWKC intern in the fall of 2019, and worked largely on outreach in social media and print, communicating science through art. Mer developed the 2019 Illusion of Away gallery exhibition and show that invited poets and visual artists to explore the concept of waste. Mer’s Division III work featured a collection of poetry about climate change, drawing together their love of writing and a deep connection to ecology and environmental stewardship.

Upon graduating from Hampshire this spring, Mer sat down to reflect on their time with the R.W. Kern Center:

What have you learned from being a part of the RWKC team?
The most rewarding aspect of the R.W. Kern internship this year was pushing to create more effective social media, especially by drawing connections between events in the world (i.e. COVID) and systems in the building. It’s gratifying to see the growth in ability to make aesthetically cohesive yet informative posts. When I look over Instagram, I see leaps and bounds of improvement in color and graphic consistency and clarity.

In terms of practical impacts, the number one skill I’ve learned is how to work well on a team in a real-life environment (not school) where projects have indefinite boundaries and shifting timelines and there are countless external challenges. I really enjoyed the general freedom to do what best aligned with my interests—because so often that was the work I could do very well—but I equally appreciated having my skill set pushed to meet the needs of the program. I feel equipped for an office environment job, or any work with graphic design, event planning, and general communications materials.

I also deeply enjoyed the hands-on work in the raingardens and the indoor greywater planters; seeing a tangible way I had personally improved the RWKC made me feel very connected to the building.

What will you take away from your time at the RWKC?
I deeply value the “web” of relationships the R.W. Kern Center internship has brought into my life. Our RWKC team—Sara, Claire, and Oliver—made it fun to go to work, and was really grounding during the chaos of the pandemic in my last year. I also got to know admissions and building staff, the Hampshire Gallery crew, and many professors whose work intersected with the building. The RWKC internship helped me to feel much more connected and supported at Hampshire and into my career path beyond school.