The School of Business’ Stephen Pilgrim, professor of marketing and economics, has been integrating collaborative projects with real organizations into many of his classes. Not only has this practice exposed students to a variety of real-world experiences but has even generated employment and internship opportunities.

One such opportunity opened for Gabriel Monteiro-Gomes, recently graduated music production major; his experience with one of these projects resulted in an exciting opportunity with Gospel Outreach.

“A lot of class projects end once the semester is over, but this project had the potential to create real impact,” said Monteiro-Gomes. “It was motivating to know that the work we were doing could actually help Gospel Outreach further its mission of sharing the gospel in the 10/40 Window.”

Monteiro-Gomes and his team spent the quarter planning, testing, and refining a custom awareness campaign: Local Awareness Global Mission. He said this project really challenged him to think more creatively about social media marketing and pushed him to find new strategies and more effective tools: “It’s been a great opportunity to grow both creatively and professionally.”

Just before finals, the team presented their findings to the class and Brent Scully, president of Gospel Outreach. Scully was particularly interested in the social media aspect of the presentation, where Monteiro-Gomes shared several tools, examples, and ideas for how he would approach growing the company’s social media presence.

After the presentation, Scully approached Monteiro-Gomes and offered him an opportunity to join the Gospel Outreach team. Monteiro-Gomes officially started working there in late June, where he has been utilizing the very same tools and strategies he learned and developed in class.

His role at the company is focused on managing a social media presence, primarily on Instagram and TikTok. He helps create content, develop social media strategies, and find new ways to increase awareness of Gospel Outreach and its mission.

“I'm excited that my work is contributing to a mission I genuinely believe in,” said Monteiro-Gomes. “Everyone on the team has been incredibly welcoming and passionate about what they do, and it's encouraging to work alongside people who care deeply about sharing the gospel.”

Many of Pilgrim’s classes integrate a form of this real-world collaboration, where students get to work with companies from a variety of market sectors. Check out Amongst business professionals or Real-world success for more student experiences with projects like this one. Learn more about the School of Business at wallawalla.edu/business.

Posted Aug. 5, 2026.