ODESSA, Texas — On Thursday night, the Ellen Noel Art Museum hosted the University of Texas Internship Reception.
The reception is a part of the university's Home to Texas Program. It is a program where interns go back to work in the town that they grew up in.
The director of the program said this is an important piece because a lot of people move to bigger cities leaving the smaller cities with not as much talent. However, it does leave the students to better appreciate where they grew up.
"Students have a lot of positive feedback to say, one, there's a deeper appreciation for their hometown that they had because a lot of them say, I'm leaving for Austin and I'm never coming back," said Bradley Matthews, director of internships and career experiences. "They might go to Austin, Dallas, Houston, whatever it might be or go to another larger city, but then they come back and they see the deeper workings of their town and they have that new appreciation and gratitude. One for maybe the family and the foundation that they've had there, but then all the employers and the potential that these towns have."
Sixty-eight interns across the state are taking place in the program in 2024, including two in Odessa.
