Thank you, Summer Interns!

Date Posted: Wednesday, August 12th, 2026

This summer, the Delaware Public Archives was fortunate to host two high schoolers who dedicated their time to helping us preserve, describe, and share Delaware’s history with the public. We’re excited to highlight their contributions below.

Future Leaders Internship Initiative (FLii)

Alexis and Liliana came to us through the Future Leaders Internship Initiative (FLii), a Delaware Department of State program. FLii is a summer program that provides professional development and real-world opportunities to high-potential high school students who are eager to better understand pathways to successful careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) through government work.

The program exposes students to hands-on experiences across state agencies while they work alongside government leaders, professionals, and executives from both the public and private sectors. FLii interns are typically freshmen, sophomores, or juniors in high school, and the Delaware Public Archives was glad to serve as a host site this summer.

Alexis: Digitizing Delaware’s Agricultural and Military History

Alexis, a high school student on her fourth internship, spent her time with us digitizing and describing historical collections for public access.

Her first project was to digitize the Delaware Agricultural Museum Collection, Printed Materials, Advertisements, a collection of printed advertisements now searchable on our CONTENTdm page. Thanks to Alexis’s work, researchers and the public can now browse these pieces of Delaware’s agricultural history from anywhere.

Alexis then moved on to the Small Manuscript Collections, James H. Wilson Collection, Diaries. These diaries, typewritten by an unknown transcriber, belonged to James H. Wilson, a soldier who served in both the Civil War and the Spanish-American War, and his wife. Although Alexis wasn’t able to digitize every diary before her internship ended, she made meaningful progress on a collection that offers a rare glimpse into the life of a soldier and his family during two very different wars in American history.

Liliana: Connecting the Public with Delaware’s Records

Liliana spent her summer internship in our Public Services division, working directly with the public and the record requests. In her own words:

One of the things I enjoyed the most was seeing the progress of taking things out for the people upon request. I feel that it makes them feel heard and treated with respect. The staff was very welcoming and kind to me and anyone who came through the door.

Each day, Liliana assisted with a research project on Delaware’s boundaries while also learning the practical side of archival work: how to retrieve items from the vault, make copies of vital statistics certificates, and locate records using the index card catalog.

Reflecting on her time here, Liliana shared:

This has overall been a learning experience for me, learning about Delaware’s Boundaries and how everything is kept in perfect condition for the public use. I really loved my experience here and would not hesitate to come back.

Thank You, Alexis and Liliana!

We’re deeply grateful to Alexis and Liliana for the energy, curiosity, and care they brought to the Delaware Public Archives this summer. Their work, from digitizing rare manuscripts to helping visitors access the records they need, helps ensure Delaware’s history remains accessible for generations to come. We look forward to seeing where their future leadership takes them!

If you or a loved one is in high school and interested in doing an internship at the Archives next summer, keep an eye out in spring for the next round of applications. You can find more information on the FLii website or by emailing DOS_FLii@delaware.gov.

And if you’re not a high schooler but you’d like to volunteer with us, find out more on our website.