Six WWU Students to Participate in 2019 Legislative Internship Program

Six students from Western Washington University have been selected to participate in the 2019 Legislative Internship program in Olympia. The internship begins the first day of the legislative session in January and ends the last day of winter quarter.

Kate Armstrong of Olympia, Sam Moschel of Snohomish, Jessica Thom of Kennewick, Amanuel Mamo of Shoreline, Coby Cowan of Olympia, and Nathaniel Williams of Tacoma were selected for this opportunity.

Armstrong, Cowan and Mamo are Political Science majors, Moschel is a Political Science and History double-major, Thom is an English Literature major and Williams is a History/Social Studies major.

Interns are typically assigned to the state House or Senate, and then matched to a specific office based on their skills and interests. Under the supervision of House and Senate Intern coordinators, the interns will get to directly experience the legislative process through their assignments.

The program starts off with three days of orientation covering ethics and conduct laws, research tools, writing guidelines and office expectations.

Tasks expected of the interns outside of general office work include legislative research, bill tracking, attending committee hearings, preparing and mailing newsletters, and corresponding with constituents.

The interns will also attend classes taught by legislative staff and other state policymakers throughout their internship. Classes teach how a bill becomes a law, phone etiquette, writing for the media, budget balancing, and other state government and professional development topics.

Other highlights of the internship include participating in The Mock, where interns use bills from the current legislative session and takes the roles of legislators, staff and advocates to hold floor debates and committee hearings; as well as having the opportunity to shadow a state official for at least half a day.

For more information on the 2019 Legislative Internship Program, go to http://leg.wa.gov/Internships/Pages.