Public service internship takes honors student to nation's capital

Michael Mitchell spent his summer in Washington, D.C. surrounded by politicians and other national leaders, and made some lifelong friends.

Mitchell, a junior majoring in economics and political science, was an intern in Sen. Edward Kennedy’s office during June and July. He was chosen for the internship by the Institute for Responsible Citizenship, which offers internships to 24 of the “most promising black male college sophomores in the U.S.”

The organization focuses on developing young men who will sustain a lifetime commitment to public service.

“It was the greatest summer I’ve had in college, or in my life,” says Mitchell, who is in the Honors Program. The students were housed at American University.

Mitchell answered some of the senator’s correspondence and scheduled appointments, but a large part of the internship involved attending hearings. “It was amazing to see the senators and congressmen and congresswomen doing their jobs and trying to solve problems,” he says.

He was required to take notes and read the transcripts of the hearings, and write memos to the senator and staff member in charge of the hearing topic.

“I got a lot of professional experience from the internship,” Mitchell says. “There’s no place more professional than the Senate – there are rules and protocol that you have to follow. I learned a lot. Also, there was a lot of networking and it was fun meeting people who have jobs there, who you can keep connected to.”

Mitchell attended three-hour classes three evenings a week, after working full days. One was a seminar on professionalism in the work world, another focused on federalism and politics, and a third dealt with economic theory.

One evening, when there were no classes, Mitchell and some of his fellow interns got a nice surprise. They were invited to the Supreme Court to meet some of the law clerks.

“We got to talk to law clerks for Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas,” he says. “We talked about the career paths they took, some of the things they do for their current job, and what they’re going to do afterwards. Talking to them made me more certain that I want to go into law. They described it as fun, hard work, and rewarding.”