Experiential Learning: My C-10 Internship

I am a senior at Newburyport High School interested in environmental science. Last year I was advised to get an internship in my field of interest. I did and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I could have made for my education. My name is Elisabeth DeGrano and I have been interning at C-10 Research and Education Foundation (C-10) since February of 2025. 

C-10 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works to protect public health and the natural environment in the coastal New Hampshire and Massachusetts communities surrounding NextEra's Seabrook Station nuclear power plant.

Through my experience as an intern at C-10 Research and Education Foundation, I gained far more than classroom knowledge—I developed real-world skills that have shaped how I understand both environmental issues and professional work. I learned the effects of air quality and radiation, explored the intersection of environmental science and computer science, and saw firsthand how our data is used to inform communities.

When I first began my internship, I was given simple tasks to help me get familiar with C-10 Research and Education Foundation and their mission. These early responsibilities helped me understand the organization’s commitment to public safety and transparency, especially through their efforts to keep the community informed. By supporting their social media outreach and communication efforts, I learned how important clear, accurate messaging is. This taught me practical communication skills, professional responsibility, and what it’s like to work in a real office environment. Overall, the internship not only strengthened my academic interests but also helped me grow as a communicator, collaborator, and problem-solver.

I have also contributed to the team's efforts in initiating the process of downloading historical radiation data and organizing it into a spreadsheet for long-term trend analysis. Originally, the primary objective of this work was to assess the extent and frequency of “down time” at each monitoring site over the past several decades. Understanding these patterns will help us identify opportunities for improving instrument reliability and performance. Additionally, these data allow us to provide accurate information to organizations concerned with public safety in the communities surrounding the Seabrook Power Plant.

I started this task by downloading the data and organizing it into files that I would later be able to access and reformat using the coding language Python. Python allowed me to query and format the existing data and to organize the results more clearly. Python allows users to retain every data point in each graph, which is vital when working with large datasets, such as those recorded by C-10, which collects their data every minute of every day. This formatting was essential, as it allowed me to generate clear and informative graphs and statistics that highlighted trends and comparisons between different sites. This was extremely complicated and tested my training and resilience. As a result of being able to work with the C-10 data, I was able to both strengthen my coding skills and gain valuable insight into working effectively on real analysis of large datasets.

In conclusion, my internship with C-10 Research and Education Foundation allowed me to gain insight into what a real-world job would look like and apply the mathematical and organizational skills that I learned in school. There is no doubt that I will carry the new skills I learned at C-10, such as communication, analysis techniques, and working with a team, throughout the end of my senior year and throughout college as well. I really appreciate the whole team at C-10 for guiding me through this experience and I am excited to see what other interns will do in the future.

Elisabeth is a senior at Newburyport High School in the Environmental Science Pathway and plans to major in Meteorology. Her internship experience and environmental research have strengthened her passion for science and community engagement. By advocating for better air quality and seeing firsthand the changes needed, Elisabeth gained a deeper understanding of how local action can meaningfully improve the environment. Elisabeth is also the Varsity Tennis Team Captain and Varsity Ski Team Captain.

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This educational column was originaly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on Jaunary 30, 2026.