2024 HBCUI Intern
BIOGRAPHY
Introducing Michayla Cherichel, an Austell, Georgia native and graduate of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (Florida A&M University), who served as an Interpretive Writer Intern at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site through the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Internship Program (HBCUI).
During her time at Florida A&M, Michayla served as President of the English Literary Guild and Volunteer Chair of #FreeThePeriod. She is passionate about community education, literacy, and the role public spaces play in connecting people with history, nature, and one another.
As an Interpretive Writer Intern, Michayla focused on researching and expanding public understanding of the Roanoke Island Freedmen’s Colony. Her work included reviewing historical research, identifying additional source materials, and collaborating with park staff, partners, and community members to help make the story of the Freedmen’s Colony more accessible to visitors.
Michayla believes that protected public lands, libraries, public schools, and community spaces are essential to civic life. Through her internship, she combined her interests in history, literature, and public engagement while contributing to ongoing efforts to share the stories of individuals and communities whose experiences helped shape American history.
Her career aspirations center on community education and literacy, particularly among young readers, and she hopes to continue creating opportunities that encourage learning, dialogue, and meaningful connections between people and the places they inhabit.
Education & Experience
Education
Florida A&M University
NPS SITE
Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
POSITION
Interpretive Writer
Poster Presentation – Career & Leadership Workshop in DC
As part of the 2024 HBCUI Career and Leadership Workshop held at the Department of the Interior, Michayla Cherichel presented her internship project during the program’s interactive poster session. Her presentation highlighted research and interpretive writing completed at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, focusing on the history and legacy of the Roanoke Island Freedmen’s Colony. The poster session provided an opportunity for workshop attendees, National Park Service staff, and fellow interns to engage in discussion, ask questions, and learn more about the project’s impact on public understanding of this important chapter in American history.
Intern Takeover
Webinar: Black in National Parks Week - Michayla Cherichel’s Internship Journey
Black in National Parks – Facebook | Instagram | Linktree
Webinar Recording: https://fb.watch/upsR9pM08B/
Michayla Cherichel is a recent Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University graduate from Austell, Georgia. Michayla believes that protected public lands are the backbone of public life in the United States, alongside libraries, the public school system, and municipal parks.
Her career aspirations are centered around community education and advocating for literacy, especially among young readers. Michayla aspires to combine the necessity of public access to history and literature with her affinity for the natural world to create and maintain spaces where all people can continue to learn and engage with one another. Michayla considers literacy and collaborative learning liberatory practices and currently explores these interests as an Interpretive Writing intern at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site in Manteo, North Carolina. Her project at Fort Raleigh focuses primarily on making the story of the Roanoke Island Freedmen’s Colony public-facing, expanding the National Park Service’s efforts to more inclusively interpret American history.
INTERN HIGHLIGHTS
My project focuses primarily on making the story of the Roanoke Island Freedmen’s Colony public facing, expanding the National Parks Service’s efforts to more inclusively, and therefore, more accurately, interpret American history. As an intern, I write biographies for several individuals who inhabited the Freedmen’s Colony. My published works include the biographies of Rev. London R. Ferebee and Mrs. Marie Ferribee Watkins. I also deliver interpretive programs to park visitors using audience-centered experience, or ACE, techniques. In my programs, I critically examine the impact of the New Social Order and its influence on the education administered by the missionary teachers who taught in the Freedmen’s Colony. I encourage my audiences to reflect on the divergences between intent and impact. Inspired by the old adage that there is nothing new under the sun, I also challenge my audiences to draw connections between history and the present day.
LEARN MORE ABOUT
Rev. London R. Ferebee
https://www.nps.gov/people/rev-london-r-ferebee.htm
LEARN MORE ABOUT
Mrs. Marie Ferribee Watkins
https://www.nps.gov/people/marie-ferribee-watkins.htm
Outstanding Intern Performance Award
Michayla Cherichel receives the Outstanding Intern Performance Award from Jamie Crispin of the National Park Service during the 2024 HBCUI Career and Leadership Workshop. The award recognized her outstanding service, research, and interpretive writing contributions at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.
