By Vasu Patel, Investments Intern
AI served as an Investments Intern at the Pension Boards, focusing on integrating AI (Artificial Intelligence) into our fixed income portfolio.
My main project involved leveraging a large language model (LLM) to parse ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) data and selecting fund managers based on this analysis. I actively participated in weekly investment team meetings, engaging in investment discussions and networking with team members.
Additionally, I joined fund manager calls and gained insights from quarterly updates on investment returns and market outlook. Throughout the internship, I developed skills in Excel modeling, AI, LLMs, and ESG metrics. I also enrolled in the Bloomberg ESG course to further support my role.
Highlights of my internship include an organizational picnic, collaboration with fellow interns on a capstone project, and attendance at weekly roundtable meetings with key individuals. This immersive experience has significantly broadened my knowledge and skills in a professional setting.
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Abby Mullaney, Marketing and Communications Intern
I had the privilege of working with the Marketing and Communications team, where I gained practical experience in real-world scenarios. I worked on organizing the Pension Boards’ products and services into distinct persona types, which helped us better understand our members and their needs.
Additionally, I worked on an Instagram proposal that included mockups of potential graphics for the Pension Boards’ use. These tasks not only aligned with my future career goals, but also allowed me to contribute something meaningful to PBUCC.
Each summer, the interns work on a research Capstone Project. Working with a diverse group of interns allowed us to have different perspectives when we worked collaboratively. Over the course of 10 weeks, we focused on creating solutions that will meet member needs in tangible ways, making the summer even more rewarding.
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Nimisha Menat, Analytics Intern
During my 10-week summer internship at the Pension Boards as an Analytics Intern, I gained hands-on experience by analyzing financial data and generating actionable insights.
I collaborated with a diverse team of seven professionals from various educational backgrounds on a Capstone Project that aligned with the Pension Boards’ strategic goals. The blend of our different perspectives and ideas greatly advanced the project. My key tasks involved creating statistical analyses and visualizations using Power BI, which sharpened my research and data visualization skills.
The weekly leadership round table sessions with Pension Boards’ staff were a highlight of the summer, offering a deep dive into the organization’s operations and enhancing my understanding of the industry and team dynamics.
This internship provided excellent networking opportunities, clarified my career goals, and significantly boosted my confidence and expertise in Data Analytics. It was a highly rewarding learning experience!
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Sharomith Wanja, Finance Intern
I had an amazing experience this summer with the Pension Boards. I interned with the Finance team in the Center of Excellence department, where I gained valuable insights into the billing workflow process.
I also had the opportunity to work closely with two staff colleagues on a research project focused on annuity overpayments.
Additionally, I collaborated with a cross-departmental team of interns on our Capstone Project, which broadened my understanding of the organization's operations.
This experience enhanced my analytical skills, deepened my knowledge of financial processes, and taught me the importance of teamwork and cross-functional collaboration.
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Sean Cadesca, Finance Intern
I have had the pleasure of participating in the Pension Boards’ Summer Intern Program working with the Finance team and benefiting from great leadership at both the executive and managerial level. During this period, I gained practical experience in finance and accounting, building my general knowledge of the field.
I was always encouraged to do more and contribute to my team. I quickly added NetSuite to my technology toolkit— a skill I would not have acquired without the on-the-job training. I am grateful for the trust the Pension Boards placed in me to work toward proficiency.
Our Capstone Project was a fantastic opportunity to cultivate innovation and bring fresh ideas to the Pension Boards. I worked with senior leadership to refine ideas into actionable plans, which allowed me to look back on my time and see what I personally contributed.
I cannot say enough about the great culture that was built upon throughout my time with the Pension Boards. We had individuals from various disciplines and walks of life that made work a true pleasure, all while striving to accomplish a common goal of doing good for our stakeholders.
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Grace Ramsey, Programs Analyst Intern
My summer with the Grants and Scholarships team at the Pension Boards has been truly transformative. Working closely with an excellent team dedicated to supporting clergy and lay workers, I gained an understanding of the pivotal role financial assistance plays in fostering community and furthering the mission of the United Church of Christ.
I have been fortunate to witness firsthand how our Ministerial Assistance empowers ministers to answer their call. Additionally, I've gained invaluable insights into the intricacies of the grant allocation processes and honed my research and analytical skills.
Through my experience speaking with Pension Boards’ members, I have developed a profound appreciation for the impact of philanthropy on individuals and organizations within the church.
Beyond professional growth, this internship has reinforced my commitment to service and social responsibility within the faith community in which I was raised. It has been an honor to contribute to the mission of empowering clergy and advancing the church's mission through strategic financial support.
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Sriman Katipally, Information Technology Intern
This summer, I had the privilege of being an intern with the IT team at the Pension Boards. Under the guidance of exceptional leaders at both the executive and managerial levels, I gained invaluable insights and hands-on experience in the IT field.
During my internship, I built on my knowledge of IT from a practical standpoint, developing proficiency in Azure Cloud and Azure DevOps. I also worked extensively on Python automation, which enhanced my scripting and automation capabilities. One significant project involved our use of Azure Storage Account, which improved our development workflow and efficiency. These are skills I could only have learned through on-the-job experience.
A highlight of my internship was the Capstone Project, where I collaborated with senior leadership to bring innovative ideas to the company. This project allowed me to apply my learning in a real-world context and see the tangible impact of my contributions. The culture at the Pension Boards was incredibly supportive and inclusive.
Working alongside individuals from diverse backgrounds and disciplines made each day a pleasure. The shared goal of achieving excellence for our stakeholders created a collaborative and motivating environment. Overall, my internship at the Pension Boards was a transformative experience. I am grateful for the opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute to such a dynamic team.
This summer intern experience has solidified my interest in IT and provided a strong foundation for my future career aspirations, particularly in cloud technologies and automation..
The Pension Boards invites emerging leaders to apply for its exclusive Summer Internship Program at the beginning of each year for the June to August 10-week program.
Selected candidates will address real business challenges, create exciting possibilities and solutions, while driving impact for the organization's future growth initiatives. LEARN MORE.
By Weichin Lin, Customer Experience Intern
This summer internship at the Pension Boards-United Church of Christ (PBUCC) has far exceeded my expectations. Despite being a relatively small organization, the level of planning, accommodation, and genuine friendliness matches that of any larger company. I am thrilled with my decision to choose this internship, as it has provided me with a well-rounded and enriching experience.
As a Customer Experience Intern for the Member Services team, I was assigned several tasks, including analyzing past termination and enrollment reports for our members, studying churn rates, designing and implementing a system to organize the Shared Drive, and researching the complaint management system. While some of these tasks utilized my prior experience and skills, others required me to seek assistance from fellow team members. I am grateful for the incredible support I received from everyone in the team, particularly my manager, Gregory Exavier, who went out of his way to ensure my internship was fulfilling.
Beyond working with the Member Services team, the Capstone project added meaningful purpose to my internship. It allowed me to explore the different aspects of faith and financial insecurities experienced by our members that I would not have had the chance to encounter otherwise. Conducting research, brainstorming solutions, and engaging with real people to find an open-ended resolution provided me with a unique consulting experience and invaluable learning opportunities. Knowing that this project will contribute to PBUCC's efforts to help clergy secure their financial future is itself is a great reward.
One of the most valuable takeaways from this internship was the general learning experience. I thoroughly enjoyed participating in the weekly leadership roundtable sessions and lunch and learning sessions with staff. These opportunities allowed me to interact with the CEO of the Pension Boards, Brian R. Bodager, to learn about all the functions of the organization, and hear personal stories of how the staff found their calling at the Pension Boards. I will genuinely miss these events, not to mention the fantastic lunches we shared!
Without a doubt, I have no regrets about taking up this internship. It was a perfect fit for my summer, and I am eager to see what the last few weeks have in store. I am grateful for the knowledge and experience I have gained during my time at PBUCC, and I look forward to applying these lessons to my future endeavors.
By Emma Gun, Marketing and Communications Intern
As the Marketing and Communications Intern for this summer, I have had the opportunity to take part in many interesting and diverse tasks. This internship has allowed me to combine my passions for both film and economics through various projects.
Over the summer, I have been able to strengthen my graphic design skills by creating advertisements and graphics for social media. I really enjoyed getting a request or idea from the marketing team and seeing through their vision, embedding it with my own creativity. I’ve also been able to build on my editing experience by creating video ads and campaigns. It’s a ton of fun having an idea or message that I want to get across and producing a short video that does just that.
It's also been amazing getting to pull from my more analytical and economic interests with the Capstone Project. Not only do I get to work with four other enthusiastic and bright interns, I also get to bring my own expertise to the table and efficiently collaborate. This project has taught me useful team-building skills, understanding what my strengths are, and how to work efficiently in a group. I’ve enjoyed all the research and data collection we’ve had to do, and how supportive the interns and our supervisors are of this project. We were given a very broad Capstone Project, and I have loved seeing the interns creatively produce many different ways to look at the subject matter and present it.
The people at the Pension Boards are incredibly supportive of the interns, constantly encouraging any idea we have and providing useful feedback. Our supervisors and coworkers build on our ideas and give us as much help as they can while still allowing us to independently produce our visions. I would highly recommend this internship as a way to combine your analytical and creative strengths while learning what a supportive and pleasant work environment looks like.
By Sean Wang, Health Plans Intern
I really enjoyed my summer with the Pension Boards-UCC (PBUCC), The internship program was thoughtfully designed to be fun and engaging as I worked with a wonderful cohort of interns and met with many leaders within the PBUCC organization. Although I wasn’t familiar with either the Pension Boards or the United Church of Christ prior, I am deeply thankful for the people and experiences here. PBUCC’s commitment to diversity and social justice is grounded not only in their messaging but also in their actions.
The Pension Boards’ recent history is telling as their staff has become more diverse in background as well as emphasizing the importance of engaging in sustainable practices and listening and responding to the needs of their members. Every person at the Pension Boards comes to the organization with the intent to make meaningful contributions and ensure that UCC members and partners are well taken care of.
Working with the Health Plans team has been an incredibly educational experience as I learned more about their responsibilities in managing the various health benefits of their members. I was able to engage in research related to many forms of healthcare including: health insurance benefits policy and rates, state- and federal-level policies affecting healthcare management, and changing trends in health benefits needs. My biggest takeaway from this work has been better understanding the many factors to consider and difficult decisions made to provide quality health benefits to a relatively small group of people, in a country where health insurance coverage and information is incredibly fragmented.
I enjoyed working with my fellow interns for the Capstone Project to develop a framework for researching clergy members’ psychology of financial decision-making; each one of them brought their unique perspectives and skill sets to make up a great final product. Beyond building teamwork and communication skills with my cohort, I gained a deeper appreciation for the larger systemic needs within the United Church of Christ and the occupation of clergy. A major tension that I had to grapple with was accepting the Capstone Project as one of many undertakings by PBUCC and the denomination at-large to respond to those systemic needs; these responses come through work at Generations University, the various working groups, as well as research conducted by the denomination.
Among many pieces of advice at our Lunch & Learn sessions, the one that sticks with me most is embracing a career with planned or serendipitous turns – many PBUCC staff members have colorful and storied careers filled with some strategic career-oriented moves and others more spiritually- or personally-grounded. I am thankful for the Pension Boards for providing me a summer filled with not only traditional work to support the needs of its members, but also many doors in front of me, and to be opened.