Despite recent layoffs and job losses due to the effects of artificial intelligence tools, the computing workforce still needs more participants. In particular, software engineering was the most in-demand job in the first half of 2025. To meet this need, one of the biggest challenges of undergraduate education is producing workers who are ready to join industry positions. Internships are known to help prepare students for employment; however, securing one before graduation is difficult, especially for students with low-income backgrounds who are usually stuck with low paying jobs unrelated to their career targets. To alleviate this situation, we are introducing an internship program that pays meritorious students to receive on-campus training and professional development, while they develop real-world software products for external non-profit clients. Here, we report preliminary results from the first out of three funded years of this program. We describe this unique program, show promising increases in self-reported attitudes and abilities of ten interns, and describe our collaborative projects. We conclude that while the program shows increases in several promising abilities, more data is needed to provide significant changes.