It's that time of the year again. It's the time when college students start showing up after returning home for the summer. But there's one more aspect of this yearly rite. It's also the time when students who are majoring in various subjects arrive for pre-arranged internships.

Here at Newschannel 6, we usually get students from Cameron University in Lawton and Midwestern State University here in Wichita Falls. However there is one special intern that came from Texas State University (formerly known as Southwest Texas State) in San Marcos. My daughter Katy has decided to go into the business and is majoring in Mass Communications. She is interested because she had first declared the major of Zoology. Last summer she interned at the San Antonio Zoo. It's billed as one of the top five zoos in the nation. She worked in the aquarium and did so very well. She was one of only three students who started the zoos intern program who finished all 200 required hours. In fact, she ended up with more than 200 hours. That summer was filled with cutting up fish for the other fish to eat, as well as cutting up this nutritional "gel" that was fed to fish. She spent quite a few hours cleaning tanks. But the joy of doing  a job in the field she was interested in was tempered by the fact that several people with advanced degrees also only made $7.00 per hour.

That's why she decided to change here degree to Mass Comm. I guess she hasn't looked to see what beginning reporters make either. Most sign up for what they know will be low pay, but rich in experience, at least on their first small market jobs. Experience that will help them move along to better paying jobs. If you've lived a long time in Wichita Falls, you know that reporter's faces change out quite often on TV, no matter which station you watch!

But the interns are here to see what the business is like and if they're willing (more like if their parents are willing)  to put up with low pay. So here we go. I have encouraged Katy to focus on internal jobs like a news producer instead of the usual reporting jobs. I know producers are hard to find. They also have more responsibility. A producer is in charge of the show (with oversight from the news director, assistant news director and assignments editor.) Producers, good producers also have the ability to advance to larger markets and more pay much faster than reporters. A good producer can make a third or half as much again as a reporter. There are just too many people who want to be on camera and report.

How will I handle my daughter's training here without seeming like I'm giving preferrental treatment? Katy and I have talked about that very thing a number of times. She wants to play it straight. She doesn't want people to think, just because she's the boss' daughter she will get a deal. I will only occasionally offer direction, I leave the dirty work up to my assistant news director Jermaine Ferrell. Oh yes, I will get involved sometimes. But the bulk of training goes to Jermaine.

This business at the local level is an honorable one. Interning is a good way for students to find out if this is what they want to do with their lives. Some decide they don't want to put up with all the rules and ethics and move on to something else. But for me and others on my staff who want a good crop of graduates to choose from, we take internships very seriously and make sure the 200 or so hours students spend with us gives them a good look into what their future holds.