JWU Hospitality Student Lands Outdoor Adventure Internship
Ariana Adolph ’27, a Sports, Entertainment and Event — Management (SEEM) major at JWU Charlotte, spent her summer gaining hands-on event management experience as a youth programming coordinator intern at the U.S. National Whitewater Center (USNWC).
From JWU Career Fair to Whitewater Center Dream Internship
Located just outside Charlotte, North Carolina, the Whitewater Center is an outdoor adventure destination offering whitewater rafting, kayaking, hiking, biking, ropes course challenges and zip lining designed to promote engagement and team building.
For Adolph, the internship provided a firsthand look at the event planning, guest experience and behind-the-scenes operations that bring those experiences to life.
Adolph’s path to the center began at Johnson & Wales University’s Spring Expo 2026 Career and Internship Fair.
Adolph enjoying the great outdoors at the U.S. National Whitewater Center.
Interested in event and venue management, Adolph was looking for an opportunity to combine her passion for creating experiences with her love of the outdoors. When she connected with representatives from the Whitewater Center at the Spring Expo, she immediately recognized the potential fit.
“I knew I loved the outdoors and wanted to eventually work in an event environment, so the Whitewater Center felt like a natural fit,” Adolph said.
After her conversation with the center’s representatives, Adolph applied for, interviewed and was offered the position of youth programming coordinator intern.
Learning from the Guest Experience
Adolph’s introduction to the center was intentionally immersive.
Rather than learning the organization solely through presentations and paperwork, she and the other interns experienced many of the guests’ activities themselves.
“The Whitewater Center is all about the guest experience,” Adolph said. “For a full week, we experienced the activities it offers guests, which gave us a better understanding of what our visitors experience and how we can help create that experience for them.”
The internship reinforced an important lesson for Adolph: creating a successful experience starts with understanding the guest.
Summer campers learning and enjoying whitewater rafting at the Whitewater Center.
Throughout her internship Adolph learned the expectations of youth programming and was gradually given more responsibility.
“It’s been clear that they want me to get the most out of my internship,” Adolph said. “They’ve taken me under their wings and entrusted me with meaningful projects while giving me the room to learn, make mistakes and grow.”
From the Classroom to the Event Management Field
Throughout her internship Adolph supported outdoor education, team-building experiences, field trips and summer camps, with her primary focus on the camps. She helped counselors implement crafts, scavenger hunts and sensory experiences while responding to critical issues with campers, primarily behavioral issues. Adolph quickly learned that youth programming requires a different approach than other levels of programming.
“I don’t have younger siblings, and I’ve never worked with young people before, so this was all new to me,” she said.
Behind the scenes, Adolph learned about scheduling, activity planning and logistics, gaining an understanding of the preparation required to create successful guest experiences.
Her internship also exposed her to the marketing, operations, finance and emergency response departments, showing her how different teams collaborate to create the Whitewater Center experience.
Adolph also contributed to the center’s content by helping to film a marketing video, learning more about the value of creative communications to build excitement and shape how an organization connects with its audience.
Adolph with fellow college interns at the U.S. National Whitewater Center.
Putting Event Management Skills to the Test
One of the most meaningful opportunities for Adolph was working with other interns to plan and coordinate the center’s annual employee appreciation event. A more traditional event-planning environment, the team had to consider everything from activities and catering to music, logistics and overall execution. It was the perfect opportunity for her to apply concepts in a professional setting that she had studied at JWU.
“Being part of the planning process taught me how much teamwork and communication go into executing a successful event.”
Putting Her JWU Education to Work
Adolph began her internship with a foundation built through JWU’s experiential education.
A wedding and ceremonies course proved particularly valuable for her internship as she worked with a future bride to create a memorable event.
“That planning experience, attention to detail and learning to adapt when things don’t go as planned really helped me during my internship,” Adolph said.
Her SEEM coursework taught her about planning, logistics, guest experience, communications and execution, skills she put into practice throughout her internship.
“At JWU, we’re not just taking notes and reading out of textbooks,” Adolph said. “I love that we’re encouraged to explore and actively participate.”
Adolph learning how to secure the zip lining equipment before trying it out.
Advice for Students Seeking Internships
Adolph’s advice to other students is to connect opportunities to interests and career goals, prepare before meeting employers and network to make personal connections. She also encourages students to be open to unexpected opportunities.
Adolph entered the summer hoping to gain event management experience, but her work also included youth and experiential programming, outdoor education, content creation and operations.
Preparing for a Career in Event Management
“This internship reinforced that this is exactly what I want to do,” Adolph said. “It gave me real-world experience, challenged me in ways I didn’t expect and helped me grow both professionally and personally.”
Those are lessons she’ll take with her as she continues her studies at JWU and prepares for a career in event management upon graduation next spring.