INF L UENTIAL INTERNS By Lexi Ferguson ---- For some, summer was a time of sleeping in and binge-watching :'\etflix. For others, however, summer was f'lled with new and exciting experiences where their majors and interests became their reality. Junior Paul Pearson spent five weeks in Washington D.C. serving John Boozman, the G.S. senator for Arkansas. Pearson said he worked from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., talking to constituents, fielding phone calls and emails for the senator, taking documents to the court room, giving tours of the U.S. Capitol and even writing a congressional record. "One ofthe coolest things I got to do was play basketball on the Supreme Court baskeLball court, which was right above the Supreme Court room," Pearson said. "I also got access to the Library of Congress- the one from ':'\ational Treasure.' My little orange intern badge allowed me to get into it. I would go in after work and sit down there, ju t becau e I could." Pearson said he got to see Sen. Boozman about four days per week, which wa rare, becau e other intern only saw their senators once or twice during their entire five-week internship. 'John Boozman was incredible and connected with all 10 ofhis interns," Pearson said. "He' a great man and I hope that he stays up there. I'm definitely better prepared for D.C. life. I don't know what Arkansas life is going to be like out of college, but I hope it's slower than D.C. life." Senior Haley Anzalone spent 10 weeks in Monroe, Louisiana, working as a communications intern for CenturyLink. Anzalone said he was busy doing several different projects throughout the internship, but the biggest project she and the other interns came up with was creating an app to make internal communication easier within the company. "There are lots of younger people working in the communication department for CenturyLink, so creating this app would provide them with easier access to company [information]," Anzalone said. Anzalone said her internship allowed her to have experience with a real 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.job- something that was beneficial for her future career. "I definitely feel better prepared for the real world after thi experience," Anzalone said. Along with Pearson and Anzalone, senior Emily Sheffield also participated in a summer internship, and spent nine week in \Vashington D.C. with Washington Internships for Students of Engineering (\'\'ISE). Sheffield said all of the interns were given an engineering issue that the U.S. was facing. They had to research the topic and write a policy paper, giving recommendations on how to solve the problem. Her specific topic was "how to improve the image of manufacturing." Sheffield said she always wanted to apply to law school, and that was why she applied to this specific internship. However, she came into the \VISE program knowing very little about policy or how to write a policy paper. "It was kind of a learning curve, but I learned really quickly and they did a really good job of teaching me and helping me if I had any questions, so it was great," Sheffield said. The WISE internship had its own internship journal called the WISE Journal of Engineering and Public Policy, and Sheffield's research paper was published in it at the end of her internship. "This prepared me for working in an environment around all of these business people, lawyers, executives and white house officials," Sheffield said. ·:Just meeting them and talking with them made me realize that I have something important to say that they also really like. I knew I was thinking about going to law school, and this kind of solidified that for me." Senior Haley Anz.alone spent her summer in Monroe, Louisiana, working as a communications intern for CenturyLink. Her biggest projects were creating an app, "CenturyLink Co nn ec t," fo r internal company use and leading one of the six major la unch p arties in Denver, Colo rado. I Photo by Kaz.u Fujisawa Senior Emily Sheffield spent the summer in Washington D. C., with Washington Internships for Students of Engineering (WISE). Sheffield focused on improving the image of manufacturing in the U.S. I Photo by Kaz.u Fujisawa Junior Paul Pearson spent the summer in Washington D. C., as an intern under U.S. Senator John Boaz.man. Pearson had the opportunity to field phone calls and emails, take documents to court rooms, access the Library of Congress, give tours and even play on the Supreme Court basketball court. I Photo by Kaz.u Fujisawa 1),8 ),,- PF.OPI.F. l
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