NIRI-NY-backed program places students at Georgeson for the first time in 2015
The NIRI-NY Logler 9/11 Internship Program is a familiar fixture in the IR calendar, as students head to companies across the US for a taste of life in an IR, PR or corporate communications role.
The initiative offers those who lost a parent in the World Trade Center attacks the chance of a paid internship at a huge range of firms and, by working with registered charities Tuesday’s Children and the Silver Shield Foundation, NIRI-NY finds companies willing to take on interns and connects them with suitable candidates.
The scheme is named after Elizabeth Logler, the former vice president of IR at eSpeed who died in New York on September 11.
Financial services firm Georgeson welcomed its first Logler intern this year: Jen Luckett, a psychology and fine arts major at Ohio Wesleyan University. Luckett hails from Fair Haven, New Jersey, and was a perfect fit for a taste of life at Georgeson, says Brigid Cremin, internship co-manager and business development director at the proxy solicitation firm.
‘Jen fits the bill perfectly for what we seek in our interns: she is driven, willing to learn and has a great attitude,’ says Cremin. ‘In her application she spoke of wanting to learn more about the financial services field and stated she was willing to take on challenging tasks and projects for the sake of her professional development.’
Georgeson has been running a formal summer internship program since summer 2014, and was approached by NIRI-NY about taking on a Logler student this year on the back of its success.
Cremin adds that she looks for students who are proactive and willing to try to make some progress on their own. ‘As an intern manager, what I have enjoyed is seeing the new energy and dynamic spirit they bring to the projects we assign them,’ she says. ‘It’s really incredible to watch them grow over the summer in their professional skills and as they look to future opportunities at our company or elsewhere.’
For Luckett, it was an opportunity to experience a professional world that was both of interest and relatively unknown. ‘I was interested in interning at Georgeson because its internship program offers dynamic work experience in the field of financial services and would give me hands-on experience working with seasoned professionals,’ she explains. ‘I learned something new every day, whether that was at an informational ‘lunch and learn’ with executives, or working on group projects with the other interns, or quite simply learning a new concept related to the field of corporate governance.’
As for many of IR Magazine’s readers, Luckett’s summer work was dominated by recent say-on-pay rulings, a concept she says she found interesting to get to grips with. ‘I think I found the on-the-job training to be most useful,’ she says. ‘My intern team was able to participate in weekly information sessions designed to enhance our knowledge of corporate governance generally and Georgeson’s business specifically.’
Luckett adds that she feels the skills she has picked up during her placement will stand her in good stead for the future. ‘I came into the internship hoping to get a general hands-on experience within the financial services industry and find out what it was like to work in a corporate setting,’ she says. ‘What I’m walking away with is so much more: not only was I able to further develop my communication, research and presentation skills, but also my interest in this field has grown immensely.’
The Ohio student would not comment on whether she was yet a fully converted IRO wannabe (or potential IR Magazine subscriber) but plans to complete her undergraduate studies next year.
Patrick Tracey, NIRI-NY’s outgoing president, says supporting the internship is one of the organization’s distinguishing features. ‘The NIRI-NY board is pleased to publicly reaffirm its commitment to the 9/11 Logler Memorial Internship Program again this year,’ he says. ‘I wish to thank our board member, Mark Kinarney, for his work on the program this season.’
Patrick Tracey will return to administer the chapter’s internship program for the 2015-2016 season. Companies interested in offering internships for summer 2016 can reach him at [email protected]
Laurie Havelock
Laurie has been part of the IR Magazine team for more than a decade, starting out as a reporter and research editor before becoming editor in 2023. He was previously acting business editor at the i newspaper and deputy business editor at The Daily...
