WT Student Named Intern of the Year Following Impactful Summer with Envoy Air

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, [email protected]

CANYON, Texas - A high-flying business student at West Texas A&M University is the 2026 Intern of the Year thanks to her invaluable help in rolling out a health benefits program for an international airline company.

Leah Aviles, a graduate student in strategic human resource management from Amarillo, was celebrated as WT Intern of the Year at a Nov. 5 reception in the Legends Club in the Jack B. Kelley Student Center on WT's Canyon campus.

As Intern of the Year, Aviles will receive a $1,000 scholarship and will be submitted for the national Cooperative Education & Internship Association Academic Intern of the Year award. The 14 other nominees each received a $500 scholarship.

Intern of the Year applications are reviewed by a selection committee comprised of faculty and staff representing all six Colleges.

"At WT, our goal is not simply to help students graduate, but to ensure they have the knowledge, experience and confidence to succeed following school," said Sam Langford, senior director of WT's Office of Career and Professional Development. "Internships are an important part of that journey, allowing students to apply what they learn in the classroom, develop valuable professional skills, and make meaningful contributions to the organizations they serve."

Aviles was hired by Envoy Air for its 2026 summer intern program, working for its compensation and benefits team in Human Resources. Envoy, a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group, employes more than 22,000 employees in more than 125 airports across the United States, Canada and the Caribbean.

"This internship was a once in a lifetime opportunity that changed the trajectory of my career and my life," Aviles said. "Before this opportunity, I had never considered aviation as a field to start my career in. Now, I cannot imagine working in any other field."

At Envoy, she helped support the rollout of the company's new health benefit program for its U.S.-based employees, said Jeanne Edler, director of compensation and benefits for Envoy Air.

"Leah created a presentation that would serve as a training guide for our department to utilize as a tool to educate (departmental volunteers) about the upcoming changes and how they could play a supporting role at their operational locations," Edler wrote in a nomination letter. "Our team has continued to utilize Leah's presentation for various training and education sessions, and we have used it as the basis for other executive and leadership presentations, as well."

Aviles's success at Envoy came as no surprise to Kimberly Cornelsen, executive director of Rogers LEAD WT, the University's prestigious leadership program for students.

"Leah is a trailblazer who balances rigorous academics, high-level campus leadership and meaningful community engagement with absolute excellence," Cornelsen wrote in a nomination letter. "She is an outstanding representative of West Texas A&M University, and her relentless drive to turn an internship into a full-time career makes her the definitive choice for this honor."

Aviles graduated in May with a Bachelor of Business Administration from the Paul and Virginia Engler College of Business. During her undergraduate career, Aviles was part of the 2024-2026 Rogers Lead WT cohort, served as president of the Society for Human Resource Management, and as a Paul and Virginia Engler Business Ambassador. She also was part of the Attebury Honors Program and was an officer in the Hispanic Students Association.

Since graduating, Aviles was hired as a full-time pilot coordinator for Envoy Air's operations recruitment department and while pursuing her master's degree in strategic human resource management.

In addition to Aviles, 14 other WT students were nominated for Intern of the Year:

• Elisa Atkinson, a graduate student in speech-language pathology from Amarillo, who interned in the WT Speech and Hearing Clinic;
• Riley Devoll, a senior graphic design major from Pampa, who interned at America's Small Business Development Center at WTAMU;
• Kaitlin Heilman, a senior animal science major from Wolfforth, who interned at the Dimmitt Veterinary Clinic;
• Kaylen Langhofer, a senior animal science major from Plains, Kansas, who interned at Riverview;
• Kade Lawrence, a senior animal science major from Canyon, who interned at Johnsonville;
• Madyson McAshlan, a junior agricultural media and communication major from Santa Fe, who interned at the U.S. Department of Agriculture;
• Trista Pennington, a junior agriculture major from Amarillo, who interned at Durrett Cattle Co.;
• Jozie Petit, a senior agricultural media and communication major from Seymour, who interned at Cargill;
• Stetson Raper, a senior accounting and finance major from Fritch, who interned with the city of Amarillo;
• Ammileigh Smith, a senior agricultural business and economics major from Robert Lee, who interned in the office of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz;
• Carson Smith, a junior agricultural business and economics major from Simla, Colorado, who interned at Five Rivers Cattle Feeding's Interstate Feedlot;
• Ridley Strackbein, a senior animal science major from Fredericksburg, who interned at Camp Balcones Springs;
• Avel Zermeño, a junior animal science major from Lubbock, who interned for Cargill;
• and Lauren Zuniga, a senior marketing major from Amarillo, who interned at Pantex.

Nominees represent four of WT's Colleges: the Engler College of Business, the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities, and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.

About West Texas A&M University

West Texas A&M University is a Regional Research University in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT boasts an enrollment of about 9,000 and offers multiple options for students to graduate and succeed: 65 undergraduate degree programs, including eight associate degrees; and 41 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor's and master's degree, a specialist degree and three doctoral degrees. WT recently earned a Carnegie Foundation classification as a Research College and University. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference; WT offers 16 men's and women's athletics programs.

Photo: Leah Aviles, right, was named West Texas A&M University Intern of the Year at a Nov. 5 reception. Jamie Morgan, associate director of the Office of Career and Professional Development, presents her a $1,000 check.

-WT-

Elisa Atkinson

Riley Devoll

Kaitlin Heilman

Kaylen Langhofer

Kade Lawrence

Trista Pennington

Jozie Petit

Stetson Raper

Ammileigh Smith

Carson Smith

Ridley Strackbein

Avel Zermeno

Lauren Zuniga