Mount St. Mary’s University students Kayla Pahl, C’19, Jasmine Guerrero, C’20, and Alex Langan, C’20, have gained valuable career-related experience this summer through the Public Service Scholars program, which is coordinated by the Shriver Center at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County for the state of Maryland. This program offers selected students an opportunity to develop their skills in Maryland’s public and social sectors.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for students to build skills and to network in a field of interest outside of the classroom,” said Clare Tauriello, director of the career center at Mount St. Mary’s University. “Kayla, Jasmine and Alex are stellar examples of talented Mount students, and we're excited about how this experience could help launch their careers.”
Applicants must be either a rising junior or senior, attending a Maryland institution or be a Maryland resident, and hold a minimum GPA of 2.7. A total of 20 colleges and universities are represented among these programs, including Johns Hopkins University, Kenyon College, Loyola University, the University of Maryland, College Park and LaSalle University.
Through the Walter Sondheim Jr. Maryland Nonprofit Leadership program, Pahl, a native of Parkville, Maryland, is working at Baltimore Neighbors, Inc. (BNI), a nonprofit organization that promotes justice in housing in Maryland through fair housing and tenant-landlord programs. This 10-week, four-day-per-week program offers the rising senior the opportunity to learn about nonprofit management from a senior-level professional, and through seminars, meetings, field trips and networking opportunities. Working in groups, the fellows use their newfound skills and knowledge to identify a problem facing Maryland nonprofits, and try to solve that problem through research and innovation. Pahl’s group developed an education-advocacy approach to reducing recidivism in Sandton-Winchester, a Baltimore neighborhood that has been depressed for decades.
Pahl, a sociology and criminal justice major, has spent her time at BNI gathering information for an internal community resources guide so that BNI can direct people who they are unable to serve to the right organization. She also helped with the July membership drive and updated membership records.
“As a SNLP fellow, I have been awarded the opportunity to work in the noprofit sector, to gain an understanding on the structure of 501(c)(3)s, to build a network of reliable individuals, and to serve the community in which I am a part, Baltimore,” Pahl said. “I hope to continue to follow this passion and utilize what I’ve gained from this program in the future!”
Guerrero, a Frederick, Maryland native, is working full time for eight weeks at the State Highway Administration’s Office of Procurement and Contract Management through the Maryland Department of Transportation Fellows program. She and other fellows are introduced to the challenges that transportation management presents, along with the rewards a career in the field could bring. Working under a senior-level professional, the fellows learn about policy development, marketing and public relations, engineering, planning and financing, and other aspects of the profession. Additionally, they research a transportation related challenge and propose a solution based on their gained knowledge and experience.
The rising junior, who is majoring in business and Spanish, has honed her business writing skills this summer, learning how to write contracts as well as negotiation and debriefing letters. She has attended meetings, including those where the SHA advises losing bidders on how they could improve a future bid. “I have gained so much experience this summer from contract writing and negotiation to using my Excel skills in a business setting,” Guerrero said.
Alex Langan, C’20
Maryland Department of Transportation Fellows Program
Langan, a Finksburg, Maryland, native, is working under the Maryland Transit Administration’s MARC Train Service. Langan’s mentor is MARC’s chief mechanical officer.
Like Guerreo, Langan, an economics and political science major, is working with a group to research a transportation-related challenge, in addition to his daily work at MARC.