Center: Troy Brennan
Photo Credit: Thor Swift/Lawrence Berkeley National Lab

Summer internships are an excellent opportunity for students to connect classroom lessons to the real world. Just ask Troy Brennan.

This summer, Brennan – a computer science information systems major and entrepreneurship minor –participated in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Technology Transitions’ (OTT) Entrepreneurship Program. During the 10-weeklong internship, he worked on a commercialization project around the environmental remediation of wastewater.

“The D.O.E. OTT Entrepreneurship Internship put theory into practice,” says Brennan, a student mentor in the Honors Entrepreneurship Living Learning Community (ELLC).

As an intern, he worked directly with Jefferson Lab, where his role was to develop a feasibility study and opportunity landscape for their electron beam irradiation device.

“Knowledge of particle physics was something that I had no background on, and being placed into a field where I had to learn a new technology really opened my eyes to how many opportunities are out there,” he adds.

Little did he know leaping into unknown territory would pay off.

Recently, program interns were invited to Berkeley Lab, where they toured facilities and delivered their commercialization feasibility presentations to a panel of lab and judges. Brennan came in second place for the Most Outstanding Presentation Award.

Brennan, a former student assistant who worked in the Department of Management and Marketing, is no stranger to competition. He has participated in different hackathons and pitch competitions before attending the College. In 2020, his team won the spring 2020 ImpactX final pitch for their company, BuzOff.

Photo Credit: University Marketing

Each year, the School of Business recognizes our most outstanding students for their academic and service achievements. The distinguished awards ceremony takes place each May with family, classmates, faculty, and staff present to celebrate the highest achieving students.

Below are our student award recipients for the 2021-22 academic year.

College of Charleston (Office of the Dean of Students)

• Leah Martin, Alexander Chambliss Connelley Award
  The award is presented to the student of the senior class who has made the most unselfish contribution(s) to the student body and the College of Charleston. Nominations are accepted from the student body, faculty, and staff.

School of Business

• Drew Asadorian, Schottland Business Leadership Award

Department of Accounting and Business Law

• William Lochte, Outstanding Accounting Undergraduate Student Award
• Jennifer A. Patala, Outstanding Accounting Graduate Award
• Jacqueline Wirszyla, Outstanding Accounting Graduate Award
• Salma R. Mongy, William Young Warren Ripley, Jr. Award

Department of Economics

• Ethan Bain, Fanchon Morrow Condon Memorial/Outstanding Economics Student Award

Department of Finance

• Robert J. Krick, Outstanding Finance Student Award
• Blair Nemechek, Outstanding Finance Student Award
• L. Olivia Staff, Outstanding Finance Student Award
• Chloe A. Esposito, Outstanding Commercial Real Estate Finance Student Award
• Kaelin Stock, Outstanding Commercial Real Estate Finance Student Award
• Lily Urban, Outstanding Commercial Real Estate Finance Student Award

Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management

• Kim Iv, Outstanding Hospitality and Tourism Management Major Award
• Veronica Wareham, Outstanding Hospitality and Tourism Management Minor Award
• Hailey Keith, South Carolina Governor’s Tourism Student Award

Department of Management and Marketing

• Destiny Hester, Outstanding Business Student Award
• Benjamin Raith, Outstanding Entrepreneurship Student Award
• James Oistad, Outstanding International Business Student Award
• Imogen Cassidy, Outstanding Marketing Student Award
• Emily Cooperman, Outstanding Marketing Student Award
• Rachel Dinning, Outstanding Marketing Student Award
• Blaise Patrick Vevon, The Al Lifton Leadership Award

Department of Supply Chain Management and Information Management

• Connor Korfas, Outstanding Supply Chain Management Student Award
• Ariel Shatz, Outstanding Global Logistics and Transportation Student Award
• Elise Courtney, Outstanding Information Management Student Award

Bachelor of Professional Studies

• Mary “Pearl” Gibbs, Dean’s Award

RELATED: B.P.S. Graduate Becomes First in Family With Bachelor’s Degree at 75

Master of Business Administration

• Kendyl Churchman, Outstanding Master of Business Administration Student Award
• Michael Lee, Outstanding Master of Business Administration Student Award
• Katelin Studrawa, Outstanding Master of Business Administration Student Award
• Sarah Thanhauser, Outstanding Master of Business Administration Student Award

When Chloe Quirk began her time at the School of Business, she believed she had a future in real estate ahead of her. However, when she got the chance to spend the summer of 2021 working as an intern for the Political Section of the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Quirk jumped at the opportunity and moved overseas. 

Q: Tell me a little about yourself and your major. 

A: I’m a junior business administration major. Originally, I wanted to go into real estate, but now I am more interested in careers with the State Department. 

Q: What company did you intern for and what was your title?

A: I applied and was selected to be a Summer Intern for the Political Section of the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, which is the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

Q: What were some of the tasks, roles, or opportunities you were given in your internship?

A: I worked on a project where I had to write bios for the Royal Family and politicians/businessmen that would meet with Americans. I attended the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) conference, where I learned about how the U.S. could help with drug abuse around the world. I was also tasked with processing diplomatic notes–the main line of communication between the UAE ministry and the U.S. embassy. Lastly, I was able to participate in a research project on the UAE’s relationship with nations in the Horn of Africa. 

Q: What classes at CofC helped you succeed in your internship?

A: I found most of my business school classes to be helpful, especially with the use of Microsoft suite and Excel. The government classes I’ve taken also helped me, as well as the general progressive learning environment here at CofC. 

Q: What valuable skills did you gain through your internship?

A: I gained a better understanding of diplomatic relationships and how much of an influence the UAE has on the world, and I learned a lot about how an embassy and its different departments work together to achieve goals in other countries.

Q: We are all about cultivating connections here at the School of Business. How are you planning to use this experience in both school and in the professional world once you graduate?

A: In terms of school, this experience has helped me become better at collecting research, and also improved my time management and project management skills. For the future, it was a good preview of what a career with the State Department would look like and the difference I could make there.

Jody Bell

Jody Bell knows the triple bottom line would mean nothing without people. That’s why she will be discussing the topics of humanity and immigration at TEDxCharleston, an all-day event designed to enrich the Charleston, South Carolina, community through presentations and entertainment that inspires, engages and transforms.

Read more at The College Today.