Saying farewell to the fall 2021 Lutheran Services in America interns!
Each semester, Lutheran Services in America hosts interns from Lutheran College Washington Semester, a personalized internship program in Washington, D.C. where students live, study, and intern while earning a full semester of academic credit from their college.
The fall 2021 Lutheran Services in America interns were nothing shy of amazing with a great “can-do” spirit met with a smile when given new tasks and projects. While we are sad to say farewell, we are excited for their future endeavors and wish them the best of luck during their senior years.
The following is a reflection from Jayleen Velez on her time in D.C. with Lutheran Services in America.
I’ve spent the fall 2021 semester interning at two different organizations in Washington, D.C. At Lutheran Services in America, I interned with the Member Engagement team working closely with my supervisor, Susan Newton, on various initiatives. I also interned at Play Sports Academy and served as a coach to preschoolers and first graders, teaching various sports and skills. Although I enjoyed my internship at Play Sports Academy tremendously, I feel that my internship experience at Lutheran Services in America gave me a chance to develop new skills and practice techniques. From developing an annotated agenda to designing a process flow charts, the behind the scenes work that Lutheran Services in America does to bring its members and partners together around big goals is eye opening.
What I will remember most about my time as an intern at Lutheran Services in America is the amazing staff and their coaching and opportunity to serve throughout all the projects that I worked on. It has helped me not only grow into a better intern and student, but also inspired me to pursue a career in service. I will be graduating from Gettysburg College in spring 2022 and will be going to work as Director of Business Operations at Play Sports Academy in New York City. I am excited to take the skills and techniques that I have learned at Lutheran Services in America and apply it to my new position.
By Jayleen Velez, Intern
