The Clint Foundation, launched by John and Nancy McClintock of Vista Hills Vineyard near Dundee, has become a bridge between local colleges and the wine industry.

A total of 11 schools, including Linfield, George Fox and Marylhurst, now have students holding career exploration internships, which sprang from the college-winery relationship, said Martha Karson of Vista Hills.

The initiative, still in the pilot stage, offers students internship experience in various aspects of the industry.

In September, Linfield students Lindsay Gardner and Tyler Tveit signed up for the program through the Office of Career Services, headed by Kristi Mackay. Mackay was instrumental in recruiting them.

Karson, a retired Michigan State University professor with more than 40 years of experience teaching and practicing clinical psychology, said the program has three components:

- Experience in the production end of winemaking. During harvest, this year’s interns worked with Vista Hills and Panther Creek Cellars, handling various tasks related to production.

- An instructional portion that features reading, experience and research in the wine industry of the Northwest. The foundation teamed with Vista Hills, Panther Creek and Crawford Beck Vineyards is developing and delivering the curriculum.

- Experience with the industry’s marketing and hospitality aspects. In this aspect, students worked in the Vista Hills tasting room and participated in the McMinnville Wine & Food Classic and the Dundee Hills Passport Tour.

Tveit is a 21-year-old finance and economics double-major from Waikoloa, Hawaii. “This internship has been an awesome experience. It has been great to have a chance to get an inside look at such a wonderful industry while still in school,” he said.

Gardner, a 21-year-old double-major in international business and French, started off the year experiencing cluster sampling at Vista Hills. During harvest, she handled fruit sorting and punching down at Panther Creek.

Later, she got involved with budgeting at Panther Creek. And she spent several Saturdays working at the tasting room at Vista Hills.

This semester, the students met David and Jeanne Beck at the Crawford Beck Vineyards and discussed their vineyard management philosophies.

Gardner said she’s also been reading about wine and the local industry, and is now embarking on a research project. “I’m thinking of looking into how Oregon wine is exported internationally, in order to connect it with my major,” she said.

Gardner, originally from Folsom, Calif., said the program was tailor-made for her.

“I spent my junior year studying in Nantes, France, and when I got back home, I set a personal goal of learning more about wine. When I first heard about the internship it seemed like not only a great way to pursue this goal, but also a way to learn more about a specific industry and to take advantage of what is unique and special about this part of the country.

“I have really enjoyed this internship so far and I’m going to be sad when it’s over. All the people that I’ve worked with have been really great.”

She said, “As far as my original goal of learning more about wine, this has been an amazing opportunity to do that, literally from the ground up. Not many people get to have these experiences. Getting to see some of the beautiful vineyards and learning more about this industry has transformed my perception of McMinnville and the Willamette Valley.”

The program features a work-match component, enabling students to earn on the job and see those earnings matched three-to-one. It also carries college credit.

The McClintocks bought the 50-acre Vista Hills site in the Dundee Hills in 1990 and made their first vintage in 2000. They produce premium pinot noir and pinot gris in about 2,500 cases a year. Nearly 90 percent of their wine is sold from their own tasting room, called The Treehouse, at 6475 N.E. Hilltop Lane, off Archery Summit Road.