The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announced details of the seventh annual NASCAR Diversity Internship Program. The program, which began last Monday, gives 23 college students the opportunity to complete a 10-week, paid summer internship within the NASCAR industry. The 2006 program runs through August 12.

"This program is one of several NASCAR diversity initiatives aimed at introducing the professional opportunities available within the industry to diverse students," said NASCAR Director of Diversity Tish Sheets. "For six years the internship program has successfully matched aspiring students with full-time positions in the NASCAR industry. The support of NASCAR partners has helped keep the internship program running strong."

The NASCAR Diversity Internship Program features internships offered by NASCAR offices, sponsors, licensees, teams, tracks and broadcast partners. In addition to NASCAR corporate offices, the following companies are participating in 2006: Allstate, California Speedway, Daytona International Speedway, Hendrick Motorsports, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Motor Racing Network (MRN), Michigan International Speedway, NASCAR SpeedParks (in Concord Mills, N.C., Myrtle Beach, S.C., St. Louis and Sevierville, Tenn.), Octagon, Penske Racing South, Richard Childress Racing, Robert Yates Racing, Roush Racing, Sears, Roebuck and Co., SPEED (FOX Entertainment Group) and Sprint Nextel.

The current intern class began their NASCAR experience with a two-day orientation session aimed at introducing them to the NASCAR industry, the internship program and NASCAR's diversity initiatives. The orientation included tours of the NASCAR R&D Center and Hendrick Motorsports as well as visits to NASCAR SpeedPark in Concord Mills and Lowe's Motor Speedway for a ride with the Jeff Gordon Racing School.

Over 130 students have participated in the NASCAR Diversity Internship Program since its inception in 2000. These interns have gained experience working in marketing, engineering, public relations, licensing and various other areas.  Through their intern experiences, several of these students have earned full-time positions.

Each year, the internships are available to college juniors, seniors and graduate students across the country. To be eligible, students must be in good standing with their school and community, must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average and provide an official copy of their school transcript. 
In addition to the internship program, NASCAR awards diversity scholarships in tribute to NASCAR legend Wendell Scott and has a college tour that visits Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Hispanic Serving Institutions.

Below is a list of the students and their colleges. More information on the internship program is available at www.diversityinternships.com.

2006 NASCAR Diversity Internship Class

Student	School	Internship
Sasha Blake	Hofstra University	Sprint Nextel/ Octagon
Heather Callahan	Columbia College	Daytona USA
Alicia Clutter	Miami University	NASCAR SpeedPark, Myrtle Beach
Erika Davis	Hampton University	NASCAR SpeedPark, Concord Mills
Eduardo Escalante	University of Michigan	NASCAR
Serra Garcia	University of Southern California	NASCAR Digital Entertainment
Rachel Griffin	Northern Michigan University	Richard Childress Racing
Corey Hawthorne	Xavier University	NASCAR
Benjamin Horton	University of Miami	Sears (Craftsman)
Helen Hsu	University of Michigan	NASCAR SpeedPark, Smoky Mountains
Kiir Knight	North Carolina A&T State University	Motor Racing Network
Brian Lance	University of Michigan	Michigan International Speedway
Denise Lopez	University of California, Riverside	California Speedway
Coreea McCoppin	Johnson C. Smith University	Sprint Nextel/ Octagon
Luis Mora	University of Louisville	Kansas Speedway
Warren Nance Jr.	Winston-Salem State University	Robert Yates Racing
Nina Patel	Duke University	ALLSTATE
Romola Ratnam	New York University	NASCAR
Angel Samalot-Quiles	University of Puerto Rico	Hendrick Motorsports
Britni Swann	North Carolina A&T State University	NASCAR
Yuko Tsubura	California State University, Fullerton	Penske Racing South
Keishawn White	University of Louisville	Roush Racing
Lenita Williams	North Carolina A&T State University	FOX (SPEED)