The energy efficiency sector employs more than 2 million workers, the most of any in the clean energy field. It also offers wages 28 percent higher than the national median, according to the bipartisan Alliance to Save Energy. The sector creates jobs across the U.S. in manufacturing, construction, corporations, nonprofits, and more.
Lewis & Clark is offering students an opportunity to prepare for jobs in this field through a partnership with the Energy Trust of Oregon. The nonprofit provides energy solutions, financial incentives, and technical assistance to residents, businesses, and organizations in Oregon and Southwest Washington.
L&C developed a one-week training course with the Energy Trust to help prepare college students and recent graduates for internships in the energy efficiency sector. The course, which was held on campus, was co-taught by L&C staff, Energy Trust staff, and several community partners. Two L&C students attended along with seven interns from area schools and organizations, including Portland State University, the University of Portland, and Central City Concern. Participants are currently engaged as interns with these organizations and were paid to attend the training.
Amy Dvorak, L&C’s senior director of sustainability and communications, helped launch the course with the Energy Trust. “If you’re OMSI, the Moda Center, or the City of Tualatin, how do you find interns if you’re not a college with ready access to interested students?” she remembers asking. “I started talking to staff at the Energy Trust about helping other employers in their programs recruit and train student interns, so they might take better advantage of this unique and useful funding opportunity through Energy Trust.”
The course, which was co-taught by Dvorak and Kathleen Belkhayat from the Energy Trust, included a mix of lecture and discussion, site visits, and a panel of industry professionals. Participants learned about energy infrastructure, data management and analysis, legal frameworks and regulations, financial modeling and analysis, and other hands-on topics.
Interning at L&C
Lewis & Clark’s Sustainability Office employs one intern, funded by the Energy Trust, each academic year. This position came about because of L&C’s participation in the Energy Trust’s Strategic Energy Management (SEM) program. L&C works with an Energy Trust staff member who assists in evaluating energy performance and helps develop a plan for achieving the college’s energy efficiency goals. L&C measures energy use, establishes energy performance goals, identifies energy improvements, and tracks progress over time.
“The SEM program involves strategic thinking, policy and process development, community engagement, and data management,” says Dvorak. “To me, these skill areas always felt like great opportunities for liberal arts students to apply big-picture thinking to something traditionally more technical and hands-on. It’s a very liberal arts approach to managing energy.”
The Energy Trust pays its SEM community partners $10,000 per year to employ a student intern to assist with energy efficiency work. As a result, L&C has been able to hire an intern at an attractive wage of roughly $20 per hour.
“I try to hire a senior so they can go right from this job into the workplace,” says Dvorak. During the 2025–26 academic year, Violet Wojno BA ’26, who is majoring in environmental studies and minoring in entrepreneurial leadership and innovation, will be serving as the Sustainability Office intern. She attended the one-week summer training course.
“The course taught me so many applicable skills and knowledge about the energy field,” says Wojno. “I really enjoyed the hands-on site visits as they helped me envision myself in this field after graduation. I loved building community with the other interns as we were all coming into this experience with little background in energy, as well as the connections I made with the lecturers who are well versed in this field.”
Interning in the Community
Lily Cahill BA ’26, an economics major and data science minor, also attended the summer training. Cahill is a climate action intern at Central City Concern, a nonprofit that provides affordable housing and a variety of social services to individuals in the Portland area. Central City Concern’s mission is to “end homelessness by treating the whole person.”
“The training week was a great opportunity to connect with professionals in the energy industry and learn alongside students with a variety of academic backgrounds,” says Cahill. “I especially enjoyed our site visit to Benson Polytechnic High School, where we toured the newly renovated facility and learned about a number of energy-efficiency projects that were implemented on site. I’m excited to apply this new knowledge to support Central City Concern’s climate goals and energy efficiency efforts.”
Bright Future, Big Demand
As Lewis & Clark and the Energy Trust of Oregon assess the success of this year’s program, the partners are already exploring opportunities to expand. Future versions of the course could take place at other Portland-area sites—or even across the state.
With alumni working across the climate and energy sectors—and with new laws poised to increase demand for energy efficiency experts—Lewis & Clark is well positioned to carve out a distinctive niche.
“These internships are great preparation for high-paying, impactful jobs,” says Dvorak, noting starting salaries sometimes reach six figures. “And energy efficiency is a super important tool for climate work—it’s cost-effective, practical, and increasingly essential.”
Sustainability
