Nick J. Palazzetti, Ph.D., CFRE
Executive Director
Contact Nick at npalazzetti@trcfwpa.org

Nick J. Palazzetti has 25 years of diverse executive and fund development experience, as well as more than 15 years of work in adult education and social services.

As executive director of the Three Rivers Community Foundation in Pittsburgh, Dr. Palazzetti is responsible for oversight of all aspects of the Foundation’s operations including administration and staff supervision, grantmaking, fundraising, outreach, and public relations and marketing.  Dr. Palazzetti works closely with the working committees of the Board of Directors to ensure effective operation of the foundation and strategic, planned organizational growth.  He also serves as the Foundation’s designated board representative of The Funding Exchange, of which the Three Rivers Community Foundation is a member fund.

In his role with The Bentz Group, a national Fund Counsel Firm, Dr. Palazzetti served as resident campaign director for multi-million dollar capital campaigns throughout the United States.  He also has performed development audits and pre-campaign leadership planning studies for other institutional clients.

Dr. Palazzetti has also served as Director of Development and Planned Giving for PennFuture in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a statewide public policy research and advocacy organization devoted to improving Pennsylvania’s environment and economy.  In Pittsburgh, he was formerly:

•   Vice President of Institutional Development for The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
•   Executive Director for The Bayer Foundation
•   Senior Development Officer for the Pittsburgh Zoo and Zoological Society

In addition, he has provided consulting services to various state and Federal agencies, institutions of higher education, organizations for individuals with disabilities, and other smaller nonprofit agencies.  He also served as a fundraising trainer for the Pittsburgh Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

Dr. Palazzetti holds Certified Fund Raising Executive status, a distinction awarded by the Association of Fundraising Professionals.  He earned his Ph.D. in education from the University of Pittsburgh, a master of arts in English literature from the State University of New York at Buffalo, and a bachelor of arts in English and political science from the University of Pittsburgh.

Prior to beginning his development career, he served as founder and Executive Director of the Tri-County Community Education Agency, Executive Director of New Tradition Senior Citizen Center, and program director at La Roche College.  In addition, he has authored and edited publications on adult education and financial development and served as a consultant to numerous government agencies and not-for-profit organizations.

A resident of southwestern Pennsylvania, Dr. Palazzetti has served on the boards of directors of several nonprofit organizations and participates in the Team Pennsylvania Ambassador Program.

Anne Lynch
Manager of Administrative Operations and Special Projects
Contact Anne at trcf@trcfwpa.org

Anne Lynch started out as the Office Manager for Three Rivers Community Foundation in September, 2001, after graduating summa cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Anthropology (with a History minor).  Now the Manager of Administrative Operations and Special Projects, she has helped TRCF become a true force in the activist communities in southwestern Pennsylvania.  Having moved here from Slidell, Louisiana, in 1997, she’s adopted Pittsburgh as her home.  In addition to her work at TRCF, she runs her own catering business (The Vegan Goddess), and is the co-founder of the Three Rivers Vegan Society.  She also is the Secretary/Treasurer of Greater Pittsburgh Pagan Pride Day.  She is unapologetic about her beliefs in equality for all – including non-human animals.  She has served on the boards of several local animal rights organizations, helped to organize dozens of animal rights and environmental events, and has spoken about animal rights at local high schools, colleges and universities, and even at a conference at American University in Washington, DC.  In her not-so-spare time, she enjoys reading (primarily nonfiction) and cooking.

Meet Our Interns

Spring 2013 Interns

Abby Mundell

Intern Development Coordinator Intern/Youth Empowerment Intern

While finishing her Bachelor’s in Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh, Abby is interning as the Intern Development Coordinator and Youth Empowerment Intern at TRCF.  In her position as the Youth Empowerment Intern, Abby has been very excited to work with a wonderful group of teenagers in the Teens 4 Change program, expanding both their and her own knowledge of the grantmaking process.  Abby has previously interned with Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania in the policy department.  After graduation, Abby hopes to continue working in the foundation world before attending graduate school for her Master’s in Social Work, focusing on Community Organizing and Social Administration.  In her spare time, Abby enjoys reading, knitting, and Doctor Who.

Emily Parry

Communications and Public Relations Intern

Emily is currently finishing her last semester as a Communications and Sociology double major at the University of Pittsburgh. Previously, she interned for Age UK while studying abroad in London where she worked with their fundraising and special events teams. With Three Rivers Community Foundation, Emily is in charge of updating their social media sites and generating exposure for events and other activists’ involvement in the community. She also helps plan events and produces material to increase media exposure surrounding the foundation. In the future, Emily hopes to work for a public relations firm while continuing to support social activism and human rights.

Lydia Chmill

Research and Special Events Intern

As the Research and Special Events intern, Lydia will be doing research designed to expand Three Rivers Community Foundation’s capacity for grant-making. She’ll also be working with staff and board members to coordinate and implement upcoming special events such as a benefit dinner to promote the Foundation’s new “Forward Fund.” The Forward Fund is a new fund specifically designated to funding organizations that support social change within the LGBTQ community.

Lydia is a native of Pittsburgh and loves the city. She is in the midst of her last semester at the University of Pittsburgh pursuing a Sociology major with a minor in Political Science and will be graduating this spring. Her interest with Three Rivers Community Foundation lies in the Foundation’s aim for promoting change, not charity. After graduation, Lydia plans to remain in Pittsburgh with hopes of attending Pitt for graduate school. In her spare time she enjoys reading about the news and her favorite pastime is going for walks in Schenley Park.

Fall 2012 Interns

 

Mary Pappalardo

Writing Intern

Mary is currently finishing her final semester as an English Writing and English Literature double major at the University of Pittsburgh. As a Writing Intern, her focuses are on updating the blog with articles that look at relevant issues of social justice today. This semester, in addition to interning at Three Rivers Community Foundation, she is also interning with the Pittsburgh chapter of the ACLU. After graduation, Mary plans to spend a semester working and gaining more experience and then moving on to either graduate school or a long term volunteering experience like the Peace Corps.

 

Stephanie Ensenat

Special Events Intern

Stephanie is in her senior year at the University of Pittsburgh. She is working toward her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration as a marketing major.  After she graduates in the spring of 2013 she hopes to pursue a career in non-profit event planning and continue giving back to the community.

 

Spring 2012 Interns

Chelsea Berdanier
Intern Development and Coordination Fellow
Youth Leadership Intern

Chelsea Berdanier graduated from West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and International Studies with a Communication Studies minor. She is currently a graduate student at the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs where she is studying toward a Master of Public and International Affairs degree in Security and Intelligence Studies.

In her capacity as Intern Coordinator Fellow, she aspires to advance the mission of grant writing, public relations, and marketing by interfacing with federal and private volunteer organizations and institutions of higher education. In addition to her role as Intern Coordination Fellow, Chelsea also participates in TRCF’s Teens 4 Change Program as a Youth Leadership Intern in support of youth leadership initiatives and community outreach.

 

Brittany Duncan
Oral History Intern

Brittany is working as an Oral History Intern for TRCF this spring. As a graduate student in the sociology department at the University of Pittsburgh, she studies social movements and political sociology, in particular transnational, women’s, and anarchist movements. She studied History and International Affairs as an undergrad at MarshallUniversity.

In addition, Brittany is also committed to movements outside of academic involvement, and has worked with (within the US and in West Africa) rape crisis centers, jail outreach and tutoring, women’s political mobilization, youth mentoring and tutoring, and clean water access.

 

Leah Marmo
Youth Empowerment Intern

Leah Marmo, while finishing her Masters degree in Community Organizing through the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Social Work, is working as the Youth Empowerment Intern with TRCF.  In 2010 Leah graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a dual degree in Honors Psychology and Sociology As a life-long resident of Western Pennsylvania, Leah is passionately persueing the advancement of social justice by building and strengthening local communities through advocacy, empowerment, and relationships.  During her undergraduate years, Leah spent six months in Poland studying the connectedness of homelessness and the orphanage systems within a post-communist context.

Leah plans to pursue work in public policy and labor organizing within the city of Pittsburgh. Outside of academia, Leah enjoys the perks of being an outdoors enthusiast, whether it be kayaking, hiking, or picnicking. Leah is also a strong advocate for good coffee and green foods.

 

Natalia Mitsui
Writing Intern

Natalia is currently a student at University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs earning her Master of Public and International Affairs degree in International Political Economy. She returned to graduate school after earning her BA in journalism from The Ohio State University in 2009 and working full-time.

 

 

Kayla Mulligan
Social Media and Public Relations Intern

 Kayla is a graduate from Slippery Rock University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish. Previously, Kayla interned for both Adagio Health and Näkturnal in Pittsburgh. At Adagio Health, she gained knowledge about fundraising and event planning for a nonprofit organization. At Näkturnal, Kayla broadened her public relations skills to using social media and blogging for marketing purposes. Kayla’s future goals include working for a public relations firm that focuses on international relations and travel.

 

Sam Plummer
Oral History Intern

Sam Plummer graduated from Colgate University in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in history and religion. In 2010, Sam graduated from Emory University with a master’s degree in religion. After graduating from Emory, Sam served as an AmeriCorps volunteer at the Inner Harbour Campus of Youth Villages, a psychiatric residential treatment facility for young people with severe emotional and behavioral issues. In the fall of 2011, immediately following her AmeriCorps service term, Sam entered a PhD program in sociology at the University of Pittsburgh. Her primary research interests are religion, culture, and mental health and inequality.

As an intern at Three Rivers Community Foundation, Sam will be assisting with the Oral Histories Project, for which she will conduct interviews with TRCF’s founders and early board members.

 

McKinley Reed
Web Development Intern

While finishing his Associate degree in Computer Science through the Community College of Allegheny County, McKinley Reed is working as the Web Development Intern with TRCF. McKinley has lived in Western Pennsylvania most of his life and finds the city to be enjoyable. McKinley plans to pursue a career in software and web development within the City of Pittsburgh. Beyond his school life, McKinley enjoys playing video games and creating cutting-edge programs and websites. His favorite sports to participate in are football and basketball.

 

Lauren Sowko
Communication and Public Relations Intern

As the Communication and Public Relations Intern, Lauren is working with the social media aspects in dealing with public relations. She works on reaching out to the community through Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, and TRCF’s website, which she updates.

Lauren will be graduating from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in Italian Language and Literature and Communication and Rhetoric. In addition to her two degrees, she will also be receiving a minor in French Language and a Western European Studies Certificate. After graduation, Lauren hopes to go to law school and study international law and human rights.

 

Fall 2011 Interns

Julia Rozewicz
Youth Empowerment and Special Events Intern

Julia is a senior history major at Chatham University and will be graduating in December 2011.  Her interests lay across the board, from environmental policy to history and religious studies.  She has held internships at the Heinz History Center in the library and archives and is currently working on the Teens for Change program at the Three Rivers Community Foundation.  Julia developed a passion for non-profit work after serving a summer term with KEYS Service Corps, an offshoot of Americorps.  She served her term at the Methodist Union for Social Agencies in Homestead, PA where she worked in a summer program for at-risk youth.  This has been her most rewarding experience and she hopes to continue her work with youth in the non-profit sector after graduation.

Summer 2011 Interns

Dawn Lawson
Graphic Design Intern

Currently enrolled at Duquesne University as a Senior, Dawn has been studying at Duquesne since 2008 and in pursuit of a Bachelors Degree in Digital Media Arts: Multimedia Production.  She currently illustrates for a comic company, ImagiNation Comix and has done interface design study on websites for the CONSOL Energy Center and Blue Archer.  She plans on doing professional illustration and graphic design in the future, as well as getting more video-editing experience. She’s working to become fluent in the Japanese and Spanish languages.

Aurora Matthews
Communications and Public Relations Intern

Aurora Matthews is a student at the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs where she is earning her masters in Human Security. She received her B.A. in journalism from American University in 2007.

Prior to joining the TRCF intern team, Aurora was an associate at a full service communications firm in Washington, D.C., dedicated to connecting nonprofits and foundations to policymakers and the media. There she generated media attention for various advocacy and social issues such as abolishing the death penalty, helping victims of human trafficking, and putting a spotlight on poverty in America. She has also worked for the Committee to Protect Journalists and was an intern for Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

In her spare time, Aurora is an editor for the GSPIA Pitt Political Review and an avid runner. She hopes to continue her career in public relations by making sure the most vulnerable groups of people are not forgotten about and that nonprofits advancing social change around the world are given recognition for their work.

Christine Nicklaus
Special Events Intern

Christine Nicklaus graduated from Saint Vincent College in May 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Communications. As an undergraduate, she held an internship at the Event and Conference Services at Saint Vincent College for two consecutive years. Christine gained hands-on large-scale event planning experience beginning in the spring of 2010 when she co-planned and coordinated a large open-house showcase event for the Fred Rogers Center.

Christine is currently the Special Events Intern for Three Rivers Community Foundation. In this position, she is supporting efforts for planning and logistics for the Building Change: A Convergence for Social Justice event in October 2011. Christine plans to continue developing her event planning experience and expertise on her way to becoming a full time professional event planner/coordinator. Until then, Christine enjoys volunteering at local animal shelters as well as working part time as an animal care specialist at The Kennel Klub.

Aananthi Rajasekaran
Youth Empowerment Intern

Aananthi is going for her undergraduate/bachelor’s degree at Washington and Jefferson College and will be going into her Junior year this fall.  As an intern at TRCF she is researching youth programs for Youth Leading Change of the Building Change Convergence coming up this fall.  She created a database of the various youth programs in the counties surrounding the Pittsburgh region.  She has also been writing blogs about topics dealing with social change and TRCF’s Youth Ambassador Program which was launched this summer.

Aananthi’s past experiences include choreographing and performing Indian dances for Indian Festivities, volunteering at a local hospital, participating as a counselor and head counselor for the Sri Venkateswara temple camp, and she is now currently a clerical assistant at Washington and Jefferson College

Aananthi’s future goals include working in social justice issues, international development, publich health, global studies, and other interesting things that she has yet to discover.

Extracurricular activities: Listening to music, reading magazines and books, hanging out with friends, Indian dance,

Vice President of both the Indian Student Association and the International Club of W&J, a writer for the Red and Black newspaper of W&J, and part of the Multicultural Association of W&J.

Jia Wang
Research Intern

Jia completed her undergraduate degree at Chatham University and received a Bachelor of Arts in International Business . Currently, she is enrolled in the Masters of Business Administration with a concentration in Social Change at Clark University. Relevant work experiences include: two marketing internships at MarkeIt Events & Promotion and Smart Futures Nonprofit Organization, and one Graduate Marketing Research Assistance job experience. On campus, she is a member of NetImpact Clark Chapter and Women in Business Society. In the coming year, she will hold the position of Graduate Residence Assistance. Her future career goal is to develop a social business applying economic power to help address social objectives and bring attention to social inequalities.

Ke(Coco) Yan
Research Intern

2006—Bachelor of Political Science in the School of Politics and Administration, Wuhan University of Technology, PRC
2010—Master of Public Administration, in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) of the University of Pittsburgh.
2010—Master of Social Work, in the School of Social Work of the University of Pittsburgh (joint degree)

In her previous social work experience, Ke(Coco) has worked for the Red Cross, Wuhan Branch, in China, as its funding development intern, where she recruited and trained volunteer to initiated series of fundraisers among communities and colleges in the urban area of Wuhan city by working closely with the administrative board members in Red Cross of Wuhan Branch. From 2010 to the present, she has worked for Congress of Neighboring Community (CONNECT) at the University of Pittsburgh as its policy analysis intern, identifying green funding resources, working with partners including the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and Sustainable Pittsburgh to develop a database of funding opportunities for Green Infrastructure Projects that support the implementation of environmental friendly technologies in 36 member municipalities.

From 2011 till present, she has worked as a research intern for the Edgewood Borough for Public Service Satisfaction Research, assisting Edgewood Borough in developing a community survey to measure the satisfaction and perception about the public service such as police service and waste management system by designing measurement method and exporting data analysis reports

Currently, as TRCF’s research intern, she participates in diverse research jobs including donor analysis reports, the grant-making analysis project, and participant satisfaction evaluation.

Tienv (Tina) Zhang
Teens 4 Change intern

Tina came to Pittsburgh from China in 2009 to pursue a Masters in Public Administration at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) of the University of Pittsburgh. She graduated from Shanghai Conservatory of Music with a BA in Public Administration (Arts Administration major), and also received a BE (Finance major) from East China Normal University. When she was an undergraduate student, she enjoyed all kinds of extracurricular activities and proved her strong abilities in winning the Shanghai Scholarship for both academic and work excellence, serving as a student leader in various research and practical projects, and being elected as a student deputy to give a reception to famous artists from all over the world. Her interpersonal communication skills and leadership abilities have constantly been put to the test since she was involved in many special projects (such as audience survey, research of arts centers and employment, group coordination, backstage management, hotel management, reception service, arts marketing, activities and parties planning, etc.). The diverse nature of these projects and their often very short lead time trained her to be a quick learner who is able to work under considerable pressure. Now she is majoring in Public Policy Research and Analysis to increase her theoretical knowledge and strengthen the comprehensive skills that are needed to address critical social issues.

Tina believes that each individual could maximize his or her personal values by creating benefits for the society.  Tina has been with TRCF since fall of 2010.  She started working on the Teens 4 Change program researching schools to get more young people involved in philanthropy to make a difference for the community and society.  Tina is currently the research intern and is working on Grantee survey for all of TRCF’s grantees.

Spring 2011 Interns

Nuno Almeida
Research Intern

Nuno Almeida graduated with a joint degree from the University Lusiada of Lisbon and the University of Rome, Italy, major in International Relations. In 2001 he was accepted to the College of Europe of Bruges and specialized in European Political Studies.  Nuno then returned to Portugal to start his internship at the Foreign Affairs Ministry of Portugal, department of multilateral economic affairs. His extracurricular activities include community involvement through volunteer work and public policy research and analysis. After a short passage through the private sector in the Czech Republic, Nuno took a nine months paternity leave and returned to work in the U.S. He has recently moved to Pittsburgh and started a research internship at the Three Rivers Community Foundation. Nuno wishes to get involved with the local schools at a graduate level, but first get enough practical experience to be better prepared for the challenges ahead.

Julie Ciaramella
Website and Social Media Intern

Since May 2010, Julie has maintained the foundation’s website in addition to its Twitter and Facebook pages. In 2007, she graduated from Duquesne University with a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in Spanish. In the past, she has worked for The Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper in Punxsutawney, PA, and she interned at Pittsburgh Magazine as an undergraduate student. She is due to graduate from Duquesne University with an M.S. in Media Arts and Technology in May 2011. She hopes to pursue a career that combines her love of writing, design, and social media.

Emily Dedad
Writing and Fund Development Intern

Emily is the Writing and Fund Development Intern. She began over the fall of 2010 and has continued into the spring of 2011. She graduated from Gannon University with an Environmental Science & Engineering specialty. Emily enjoys playing frisbee and racquetball and her career goals involve writing.

Kimberly Frank
Intern and Volunteer Coordinator

Kimberly began as a Research Intern and is now working as an Intern and Volunteer Coordinator at TRCF. She is currently finishing her Masters degree in political science through a joint program in Paris (Sciences-Po) and Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and is conducting research at the University of Pittsburgh. In the past she has worked as a Consultant for the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and as an intern for the U.S. Representative Sue Myrick. One day she would like to work in a non-partisan foreign policy think-tank. Kimberly has lived/worked in the Caribbean, Europe and North America and enjoys playing the cello.

Ayana Russell
Internship and Volunteer Coordinator Intern

Ayana Russell graduated from the College of William & Mary in May 2010 with a BA in Government. She is currently a student at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College in the Master of Public Policy & Management Program with a concentration in policy analysis. Raised in Newport News, Virginia, she was an active member of the community through her involvement with the Mayor’s Youth Commission and as an exchange student to Japan with the City of Newport News Sister City Program.

As an undergraduate, she advanced her community organizing skills both socially and politically. She tutored middle & high school students to help them outline their future careers paths and identify funding to ease the financial burdens associated with those goals. She also coordinated political activities in the Tidewater region for College Republicans of Virginia by organizing phone banking opportunities and canvassing for candidates. In the spring of 2010 she was part of the campaign management team that brought the first student in history, to victory in the Williamsburg City Council elections.

Her management and professional experiences both on campus and in the community strengthened her technical skill and ability. As chair of the Undergraduate Student Conduct Council she handled difficult student legal cases with professionalism. In this position she wrote legally binding letters of rationale that were presented to the Dean of Students Affairs. As an intern for the James City County Planning Department Ayana spearheaded the creation of an implementation guide that city planners could use to prioritize their projects. She also trained incoming interns and developed the framework for the Master Bikeways and Sidewalks plan for use with GIS Maps.

Ayana Russell is currently the Intern Coordinator Fellow for Three Rivers Community Foundation. In this position she develops position descriptions and recruits, interviews, evaluates, and mentors all candidates for over 15 internships and volunteer positions within the foundation. Her other responsibilities including planning special events, developing the donor database, conducting on-line fundraising through the TRCF website, and writing grant proposals to maintain existing programming and grant making.

Ayana is interested in urban development, homeland security, government accountability, and social welfare policy. She is primarily interested in the role of public-private partnerships in solving problems associated with these areas of policy.

Ayana hopes to one day pursue a position as an elected official. Until then, she enjoys political debating, kayaking, running, playing tennis, learning all that she can about policy, and working at the grassroots level to support social progress.

Summer 2010 interns

Simone Adler
Outreach and Special Events Coordinator

Simone is the Outreach and Special Events Coordinator for summer 2010. She is working on developing relationships and making connections in the ten counties that TRCF works with to expand the six issue areas to those locations. In an effort to fulfill TRCF’s goal of working with organizations in southwestern Pennsylvania, Simone is researching, outreaching, and building contacts with the potential organizations that TRCF can support.

Simone is a junior at Bennington College in Vermont, where she studies International Relations and French as well as fine arts. Her focus is on alternative forms of community development. Her longterm goal is to do research and field work in Africa and continue to work in the NGO/non-profit sector. Upon graduation, Simone intends on volunteering for the Peace Corps.

Emily Bell is the Teens 4 Change intern. Teens 4 Change is a program that invites high school students to become involved in philanthropy by organizing a board of youth to be educated about grant-making and, eventually, to award grants to youth organizations from the community.  Emily will be working to establish the program in Allegheny County with a start date in early 2011.

Emily is a student at Boston University and will graduate in May 2011 with a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Public Relations and a minor in French. She spent the last semester studying in Mali, West Africa through an SIT program called Health, Gender, and Community Empowerment. After graduation, she hopes to continue working in the non-profit sector.

Samantha Brisini
Special Events Intern

Samantha is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh double majoring in History and Political Science. This summer she is planning a public exposition at the Monroeville Mall to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In addition to this event, Samantha is also planning to host a prominent guest lecturer and hold another event focused on community outreach before the summer is over.

Julie Ciaramella
Website and Social Media Intern

Julie is the Website and Social Media intern at TRCF. Since May 2010, she has maintained the foundation’s website in addition to its Twitter and Facebook pages. In 2007, she graduated from Duquesne University with a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in Spanish. In the past, she has worked for The Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper in Punxsutawney, PA, and she interned at Pittsburgh Magazine as an undergraduate student. She is due to graduate from Duquesne University with an M.S. in Media Arts and Technology in May 2011. She hopes to pursue a career that combines her love of writing, design, and social media.

Rebecca Fuhrman
Intern Program Coordinator Fellow

Rebecca was selected as the first Intern Program Coordinator and has been instrumental in developing a sustainable TRCF intern program which was launched in December 2009. She continued her spring fellowship through the summer and will be responsible for the oversight of the 10 summer interns, introduction of several new capacity building projects, and recruitment of the Fall 2010 interns.

Rebecca is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh and will complete her BA in Urban Studies in August 2010. She concentrated her studies in community organizing and nonprofit management. While completing her degree, Rebecca also serves as youth director at a local synagogue. Rebecca will be working as a development director at a nonprofit in Israel next year. Her long term goal is to be a nonprofit executive director.

Rayna Gross
Writing Intern

Serving as the writing intern this summer, Rayna hopes to gain knowledge in the field of fundraising for social change as well as fundraising for non-profits. With her newfound knowledge, she plans to write effective grant proposals for TRCF programs, such as Youth Making Change. She will also be writing the Foundation’s summer newsletter. Rayna is currently a sophomore marketing major at the University of Pittsburgh Business School and will graduate in May 2013. She also plans to focus on a Public and Professional Writing certificate.

Se Yun Kim
Marketing and Fundraising Intern

As the Marketing and Fundraising intern, Se Yun is helping TRCF fundraise efficiently.  Through the database analysis, Se Yun is sorting target groups, discovering potential donors, and maximizing a donation amount.  His goal is to structure fund development optimization.

He has eight years of marketing experience in the luxury retail industry. Currently, he is studying at Carnegie Mellon University for an MBA and expects to graduate in May 2011. He plans a strategy/marketing career in the luxury retail industry.

Amanda Mehalek
Artwork and Graphic Design Intern

Amanda Mehalek is a student at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. She is studying advertising and will graduate in September 2010 with a Bachelor of Science. While at TRCF, Amanda wants to learn more about non-profit organizations while using her graphic design and research skills to accomplish multiple projects.

Katie Miehl
Social Change Summit and Youth Making Change Intern

Katie Miehl is the Social Change Summit and Youth Making Change intern at TRCF. Katie is a junior at the University of Pittsburgh. She is a secondary history education major, hoping to be a high school history teacher. She also is pursuing a minor in art history. Also, she is studying abroad in London next semester.

Willa Paterson
Outreach Coordinator Intern

Willa Paterson is the Outreach Coordinator intern.  She is setting up a list of possible events that TRCF can be present at in the surrounding counties to increase name recognition and awareness of the foundation.  She is also brainstorming and researching a Youth Ambassador Program (YAP).  This program would incorporate a curriculum around the six issue areas that TRCF focuses on.  A youth ambassador would be chosen to lead discussions on these issues and would be available to aid teachers in educating around diversity issues.  This program is in its first stages of development and Willa is excited to create a direction for this program.

Willa graduated from Penn State Erie in 2007 and has since traveled and lived in Hawaii and Ireland working on organic farms.  She lived in her hometown of Penns Valley working for Pennsylvania Certified Organic and volunteering with the conservation group, leading watershed activities in the elementary schools and helping the outreach team with community events.  Willa moved to Pittsburgh in February of 2010 to work for Clean Water Action, an environmental non-profit, to educate citizens about the Marcellus Shale Natural gas drilling.

Jordan Pro
PR and Marketing Intern

Jordan Pro will be a junior at Chatham University this fall where she is double majoring in Professional Communications and Business Marketing. As the PR and Marketing intern for TRCF, Jordan is working to help promote the TRCF brand at both a local and national level. In addition to branding, Jordan is working on a PR campaign for the Foundation that will target both previous donors as well as a younger demographic of potential donors and volunteers. The campaign will also work to show the overall impact TRCF has on the community and its grantees. She also hopes to maximize the impact of the PR campaign and marketing messages through multiple channels using videography, photography, and online resources.

Spring 2010 Interns

Emma McAuley
Intern Program Coordinator Fellow

Emma served as one of the Intern Program Coordinator Fellows for the Spring 2010 term and helped recruit and supervise the Spring interns. In addition to the managerial aspects of the position, Emma was involved with the development of various capacity building projects throughout the Spring term. She single-handedly established the TRCF oral history project, recording the stories of the Foundation’s founders and other contributors to TRCF.

Emma studied at the University of Pittsburgh and completed her BA in Environmental Studies and a certificate in Latin American Studies. After graduation she plans to return to her hometown in Glenview, IL to work on a nature preserve this summer. Emma is pursuing a career in environmental and nature education.

Tina Bui
Social Media Intern

As the Social Media Intern at TRCF, Tina was responsible for reaching out towards new audiences through social media networks: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. She connected with new friends, advertised events, and raised awareness about the activities of TRCF.

Take a moment a visit us at these various social media networks! Tina is senior at Duquesne University, majoring in Corporate Communication and double minoring in Studio Arts and Digital Media Arts. She will be graduating in December of 2010.

Upon graduation in December, Tina plans to work in the communications field for a few years and eventually plans to attend graduate school to earn her masters in Digital Media Arts.

Michael McGinn
PR and Marketing Intern

Mike served as a Public Relations and Marketing Intern and worked tirelessly to build relationships with local media while developing materials to promote the 20th anniversary celebration and the upcoming social change summit for Armstrong and Indiana counties. He was successful in securing media coverage of both events in several news outlets throughout the region. In addition to those projects, Mike was the editor of the TRCF newsletter, which was TRCF’s first newsletter in over 2 years!

Mike will finish his Masters in professional writing at Carnegie Mellon University in May. He will be attending NYU in fall 2010 as a Masters in Public Relations and Corporate Communications candidate.

Emily Lyons
PR and Marketing Intern

As a Public Relations and Marketing Intern at TRCF, Emily worked to promote the mission of the Foundation by developing written materials in preparation for our 20th Anniversary Celebration and Regional Social Change Summit, writing and submitting articles for seasonal newsletters, and coauthoring a grant for a new capacity building program “Youth Making Change.”

Emily graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in May 2010. She studied English, Writing, Journalism, Communications, and Public Professional Writing. After graduation Emily hopes to continue her work in the nonprofit sector. She plans to continue her involvement by pursuing a professional career that involves fundraising and special event planning.