Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division’s newest student employees spent a busy summer writing documents, filling out Excel spreadsheets and validating data as part of the inaugural year of the command’s internship program for management, business and leadership, known as IMPACT.

The IMPACT student employees, who started in June, will continue to work part time or full time as they head back to school, explained Megan Norris, human resources specialist for student employment and entry-level development programs at the warfare center, located on board Naval Base Ventura County in Port Hueneme, California.

The command’s IMPACT student employment program is a replica of Naval Sea Systems Command’s Professional, Administrative, Assistant, Clerical and Technician Student Employment Program (PAACTSEP), introduced last year, Norris said. The difference is mainly that IMPACT, created by the local warfare center, is open only to students attending Ventura County community colleges when they first apply.

Eight IMPACT students worked in various roles throughout the command beginning this summer, including Lizbeth Perez, who attended an informational session at Oxnard College earlier this year where she learned about the new program.

“After speaking with an NSWC PHD representative, I was motivated by the culture and the mission of the command,” she said. “The reason I applied was because I wanted to experience professional growth and explore different opportunities.”

Perez was assigned to acquisition support, where she validated invoices and also organized and transitioned data to the contracting officer’s representative (COR) trackers, ensuring COR files were up to date.

Acquisition Branch Manager Joaquin Vierra said he was excited to learn about the new IMPACT student employment program, having himself served as a student aide and later an intern at the command before becoming a full-time employee.

“I wanted to give another student a chance to get their experience working for the federal government, as I had,” he said.

Laura Slagle, Perez’s team lead, said it was the first time she had worked with an intern or student employee, and she was very impressed with Perez, who is a business major.

“From the very beginning, Liz demonstrated a level of dedication, enthusiasm and professionalism that truly impressed our team,” she said. “Her ability to grasp new concepts quickly, coupled with an eagerness to learn and contribute to projects, has made a significant impact on our team.”

Perez, who started this fall at University of California, Irvine, said she enjoyed the flexibility and openness of the command in encouraging the professional growth of its employees — including students like her. Perez added she is hoping to continue in the IMPACT program through graduation.

IMPACT student employees can continue past the initial 13-month employment period if their manager or supervisor requests it, Norris said. Students can remain as part-time or full-time employees until graduation and then potentially convert to a full-time job.

Continuing in the program until graduation is also the goal of IMPACT student employee Tianna Ortiz, who was assigned to a department’s administration branch.

Ortiz was attending Ventura College when she applied, and this fall started at University of California, San Diego, majoring in communications.

“I tried to be a part of every club, event and organization this summer,” Ortiz said. “I also enjoyed the many mentorship opportunities, though my main goal remains to prioritize my work and performance in the office.”

Administration Branch Manager Amelia Macias said she had a vacancy in her office and wanted to try out the new IMPACT student employment program because, “I believe interns bring new ideas and fresh perspectives to the business, which can help stimulate creativity and innovation.”

Macias said that Ortiz processed and submitted personnel actions using a digital dashboard.

“She helped increase productivity by assisting with various tasks and projects, allowing the other senior administrators to focus on higher-level tasks,” Macias said.

Running concurrently with IMPACT is PAACTSEP, which saw its first student employee in 2023, Kendall Culhane, return for 2024.

Culhane, a student at Moorpark College, has spent the last year working Tuesday through Thursday in another acquisition support branch.

Like the other two student employees, this is Culhane’s first experience with a government-sponsored student employment program.

“I thought that working here on base would be a really great opportunity for me,” she said.

Another thing all three student employees had in common is agreeing it was a struggle to learn all the various Navy acronyms used in their assigned work.

“I don’t think I understood most sentences when I first started,” Culhane said.

Culhane helped her teammates with writing desk guides and standard operating procedures and also with inputting invoices and other documentation into a SharePoint site.

Acquisition Branch Manager Cindy Phillippe was so impressed with Culhane’s work over the last year that in July she nominated the student employee for a department on-the-spot award.

“We are fortunate to have her as part of our team,” Phillippe said. “We’d love to keep her for as long as we can.”

No additional PAACTSEP student employees were brought on this year, as the command wanted to focus on IMPACT and attracting local community college students, Norris said.

The student employees’ supervisors are sharing their positive experiences with fellow workforce members, and command managers are starting to take notice.

“I will definitely love to hire another intern in the future if the opportunity is there,” Vierra said.

Macias agreed, adding, “Working with a student employee or intern provides an opportunity for employees to mentor and develop the next generation of professionals.”