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Dallas offers paid tourism and hospitality internships tied to new Convention Center District
Summary
The City of Dallas Convention and Event Services says a summer internship program will pay $21 an hour for 32 hours per week, run 10 weeks, and offer up to three college credits through local partner institutions to build career pipelines into the Convention Center District.
The City of Dallas Convention and Event Services is promoting a paid tourism and hospitality internship intended to connect Dallas residents to jobs linked to the new Convention Center District. Catherine Cuellar, project manager, said the program offers "a living wage of $21 an hour while working 32 hours a week" and is structured as a 10‑week summer placement that can yield up to three college credit hours through partners such as Dallas College and UNT Dallas.
Cuellar said the internships place participants with the convention center and partner organizations, including Omni Hotel Dallas (the city‑owned convention center hotel), Visit Dallas (the city’s destination marketing organization), Inspire Dallas (the project manager for the convention center master plan construction) and Oakview Group (property manager for the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center and Fair Park). "They can get paid a living wage of $21 an hour while working 32 hours a week with the convention center and our partners," she said.
The program is framed as more than short‑term work experience: Cuellar told listeners the goal is to create career ladders from entry‑level “below‑the‑line” positions—valet, host, fast food or similar jobs—into supervisory, managerial and executive roles. She emphasized partnerships with Dallas ISD and local higher‑education institutions to expose middle‑ and high‑school students and college students to living‑wage opportunities. "We want to ensure starting with our Dallas ISD partners in middle school and high school vocational and technical training programs all the way through associate's degree programs at Dallas College and college courses in all majors at UNT Dallas that our public college and university students see themselves as leaders in our new Convention Center District," Cuellar said.
For applicants and employers, Cuellar directed listeners to the convention center master plan website workforce development section for application details and timelines. The master plan site lists the convention center reopening targeted for 2029 and includes workforce resources and partner contact information.
