Purdue University Northwest student-athletes stayed busy over summer vacation, as 13 worked internships across the country in a variety of fields.
The women’s soccer team had the most student-athletes represented with four seniors participating in exciting positions. Senior Kelley Sharp was a Veterinary Science intern at the Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, Massachusetts. As a final project, she presented an in-depth review of the physiology of Red Pandas and even helped to develop a new diet for the animal. Midfielder Shelby Ross spent her vacation with Cummins Inc. as a Product Design Engineer. She developed several interesting projects, including a crankshaft for the Darlington Engine Plant in Darlington, England.
Mechanical Engineering major Marisa Jayne worked with Magna International in Troy, Michigan as a Corporate Engineering and R&D Business Development Intern. She assisted with external technology mining and process and technology screening within the automotive industry. Last but not least, Shayna Coy spent her second consecutive summer with the Fort Wayne Glaucoma Center, working under the advisement of Dr. William A Argus. This summer she was an Opthalmic Tech, gathering initial information and testing of new patients along with determining their precise reason for visiting.
Other sports with multiple student-athletes interning included baseball and men’s tennis. Pitcher Brendan Kelly spent the summer working in professional baseball, assisting the Gary South Shore Railcats on the grounds crew as well as in the Sales, Marketing, and Promotions department. Kelly was an instrumental part of the crew that made the Steel Yard ranked the second-best playing surface in the American Association. Sophomore Dylan Henson was a Construction Management Intern with Bear Construction in Chicago, Ill. Henson assisted managers and executives with bidding on jobs and executing contracts.
Senior tennis player Moritz Gisy was the only athlete in an international internship, as he worked with McKinsey & Company in Dusseldorf, Germany as a research intern. Moritz assisted Junior and Senior Analysts with compiling data and research in TMT (Telecom, Media, and Technology). Finance major and fellow tennis player Jonluke Passett spent his summer with Wojicki and Associates P.C. in Schamburg, Ill. Passett handled many responsibilities such as expense report entry, tax return filings, asset review reports, and bank reconciliations.
We also had athletes from men’s Soccer, cross country, softball, women’s basketball, and women’s tennis represented in the summer workforce. Senior cross country runner Alexander Morales was an engineering intern with EnerDel in Indianapolis, Ind. Morales performed Engineering Change Requests for improvement of products and assisted in assembly testing and design requirements of projects through SolidWorks.
Men’s Soccer defender Philipp Tolxdorf worked with the WestRock Paper Mill in Fernandina Beach, Fla. Tolxdorf primarily focused on a time study aimed at decreasing log truck turn times to increase productivity for the mill. Softball infielder Tessa Steffens had a unique position as an intern with the Montgomery County Court House in Hillsboro, Ill., specifically with the State Attorney’s office. She pulled the docket of cases each day for the State Attorney, along with research and drafting information for county judges. Junior Bayley Goodman of the Women’s Basketball team was with Subaru of Indiana in Lafayette as a Marketing Intern. Goodman helped create PowerPoint presentations and flyers for recruiting, as well as producing and editing a final video to be used at career fair and other hiring events.
Accounting major Chloe Conaway of the Women’s Tennis team interned with Dwyer Instruments in Michigan City, Ind. Conaway rotated throughout the accounting department, including work in the financial, general ledger and consensus, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and cost departments.
