Photo By Donnie Ryan | (Left to right) Rahill Ross, Virginia Tech, Luke Luciano, University of Arizona, Grace...... read more read more
A group of four college students has spent the last seven weeks helping the U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) in Orlando, Florida, adopt the use of artificial intelligence (AI) as well as learning about federal employment opportunities as part of the Defense Civilian Training Corps (DCTC) internship program.
Luke Luciano, a senior at the University of Arizona, as well as Joseph Brown and Rahil Ross, both seniors at Virginia Tech, and Grace Walker, a senior at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, are gaining first-hand real-world experience about how the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and Army acquisition workforce operate during their eight-week internship at PEO STRI.
DCTC is a federal government scholarship-for-service program that provides comprehensive development for selected students to earn a bachelor’s degree and prepare them to be future leaders within the DoD ecosystem.
During their junior and senior years of study, DCTC scholars engage in active learning in the classroom, take on immersive learning challenges to solve real-life problems, and participate in summer internships around the country.
Jason Shirk, PEO STRI’s director of training, and his training team have been handling logistics and supervising the cohort since their arrival at PEO STRI in early June.
“The DCTC interns arrived this summer eager to contribute and quickly demonstrated an amazing willingness to learn,” said Shirk. “Witnessing their growing understanding of the DoD through hands-on experience with our teams has been a pleasure and reflects our organization’s commitment to fostering the next generation of leaders; we are incredibly grateful for DCTC’s partnership and the exceptional talent they provide.”
All four of the scholars said they knew very little about DoD’s modeling and simulation hub in central Florida, PEO STRI, and the other service branches and organizations that comprise Team Orlando.
“My biggest takeaway so far from interning at PEO STRI is that before coming to PEO STRI I had no idea how advanced the simulations are for our warfighters,” said Luciano. “I’ve learned that ultimately the simulations we give to our warfighters are as, or even more important, than the actual systems.”
Fellow scholars agreed that PEO STRI has been a unique learning experience.
“What I’ve learned about PEO STRI is that there are really a lot of behind-the-scenes acquisition processes,” said Brown. “It’s really incredible to see the modeling and simulation, where it started off at with basic technologies to where we are at now.”
A common theme among all the scholars is a strong desire to serve their country.
“The motto of Virginia Tech is ‘Ut Prosim,’ that I may serve, and the DCTC program at Tech has a unique dynamic where it’s approximately half cadets and half normal students,” said Brown, a member of the Corps of Cadets at Virginia Tech. “Surrounding yourself with really motivated and driven people is really special and unique because we all have goals of trying to help the warfighter serve our country, and more importantly to serve others.”
The real-world challenge they were assigned by the PEO STRI Chief Information Officer (CIO) was to conduct research to identify process improvements or tools where AI could increase efficacy and efficiencies of the Army acquisition workforce.
Research included surveys, interviews, and reviewing analytics provided by AI tools currently in use by the PEO STRI workforce. Solutions offered by the team will be used to improve daily operations at PEO STRI.
“We were tasked with going around to all the PMs [project managers] and seeing how AI is currently being used in those PM shops,” said Ross. “At the beginning, when we first came here, I think a lot of us thought it was generation thing. However, as we went around and talked to them we realized that is just a small part of the problem. The DoD AI tools themselves are also behind.”
In addition to jump-starting a career in the federal government, the DCTC program offers number of benefits to participants.
“I think the opportunities DCTC provides to young people like ourselves is endless,” said Luciano. “Learning new skills, meeting new people, and even getting out of your comfort zone is a great opportunity for students like us to start learning about the Department of Defense and the federal government as a whole.”
Luciano said wherever the team has gone the PEO STRI staff has been welcoming.
“Our favorite thing to do is go cubicle hunting, and everyone we bother has been willing to talk to us and answer our questions,” said Luciano. “PEO STRI has definitely surpassed what I was expecting.”
Ross said he previously thought being just an intern might close doors rather than open them.
“Actually, the inverse is true; there are a lot of people working for the government who are very passionate and remember their own internship experiences,” said Ross. “You never know what doors it will open for you.”
All four of the DCTC scholars said they greatly appreciated the solid mentorship they received from the PEO STRI workforce during their internship.
“When I first came [to PEO STRI] I thought we would be stuck in a cubicle for eight hours,” said Walker. “But we have been going to different cubicles and meeting different project managers, and everyone has been so welcoming.”
Walker said the entire PEO STRI workforce seems to be like a tight knit family, and she highly encourages other students to apply for the DCTC program for its networking opportunities.
“Definitely do your research on DoD even before you apply,” said Walker. “And then go and do more research on the organization before you start your internship.”
The DCTC program is open to students at universities across the nation who have an interest in DoD careers related to acquisition, digital technologies, critical technologies, science, engineering, and finance.
“This program is benefitting young people’s interest in federal service,” said Luciano. “Without this program it’s a lot harder to be introduced to federal service.”
For more information about DCTC opportunities, visit the official DCTC website at https://dctc.mil
| Date Taken: | 07.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 07.17.2025 12:55 |
| Story ID: | 543074 |
| Location: | ORLANDO, FLORIDA, US |
| Web Views: | 260 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, DCTC Scholars Help Promote AI and Learn about Federal Acquisition Workforce during Eight-Week Internship at PEO STRI, by Donnie Ryan, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
