Disney internship adventure begins
“I planned on going to law school. But by my senior year at Texas A&M, I decided it wasn’t going to be a good fit for me. I thought, this is not what I want to do with my life anymore.
“I majored in agricultural communications and journalism. So when I graduated, I moved back home and started looking for jobs in the Houston area. I had a few bites, but nothing I was super interested in.
“Then spur of the moment I was like, you know what, I have always wanted to work at Disney. It’s been a dream of mine. There’s just something about Disney that brings so much joy to people. Whenever I talk to someone about Disney World, Disneyland or the Disney company in general, they usually have this big smile on their face. They’re thinking back to a time when they were in the parks, or a fond memory of their family watching a Disney movie. I wanted to be part of that magic. I wanted to be part of the joy that Disney brings to people every day.
“I decided to apply for the Disney College Program. It’s a paid internship program through Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California. You can work in almost any area of the parks, essentially from custodial to attractions. You have the opportunity to live on Disney property in apartments with other students.
“It’s a big program, but it’s pretty difficult to get in because a lot of people want to work for Disney. I had a really good experience with my application and interview. When I got my email, I was sitting on the couch at home thinking, if it’s a no, then that’s OK. There will be something else out there for me. When I opened the email and it was a yes, I cried tears of joy. I was so excited. I was offered a position as PhotoPass photographer, taking pictures of people all day having fun at Disney World. It was more of a dream come true than I could have ever imagined.
“I immediately called my mom at work and said, ‘You’ll never guess. I’m moving to Florida. I’m going to work at Disney World.’”
— Kenzie Lackey
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