Utah Valley University is sending two of its senior school newspaper staff members to intern in two of the nation's largest cities this year.

Spencer Shell, opinions editor at the university's Review, began a six-month internship with the Czech ambassador to the United Nations on Friday, while David Iba, the staff's photo editor, will head to Washington, D.C., this summer.

Shell wrapped up his holiday celebrations early and headed to New York City, where he'll help to usher in the Czech Republic's six-month European Union presidency. Ambassador Martin Palous and his staff welcomed Shell as one of only a couple of interns selected nationwide.

"It is going to be an adventure," Shell said, adding that he hopes the experience will aid in his career exploration, "if working in that kind of field is something I would like to do."

The UVU communications student is interested in public relations, which helped land him the internship. He said he's expecting hands-on experience that will help him get a job in the field.

"The civil and foreign services are both interesting to me right now, and this internship will definitely help me figure out what kind of career I want to go into," Shell said.

Both credited the student newspaper with giving them the experience they might need to go into their careers.

"It has opened so many doors for me and has been a good influence in my life," Iba said.

He was introduced to his upcoming opportunity after helping to host the UVU visit of M. Ashraf Haidari, deputy chief of mission and political counselor of Afghanistan who is second-in-command to Said T. Jawad, ambassador to the United States, in early December. Haidari asked Iba to take pictures during his stay, to post on the embassy's Web site.

After learning of Iba's mission to Brazil, Haidari asked Iba to intern with him this summer, as the embassy does a lot of work with the Brazilian government.

Iba will be using his Portuguese skills to monitor the Brazilian newspapers and news outlets and compile daily reports on Brazilian and Venezuelan current events for Haidari and the embassy. He also will travel with Haidari to Brazil serving translation duties. He said he hopes to learn how an embassy and diplomacy work, and how the media affects decision-making within.

Brent Sumner, adviser of the UVU Review, said both Shell and Iba have served the newspaper well during the past two years and will represent UVU and the state of Utah well in their internship experiences.

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E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com