Nora Stephens and Brittany Smith both spent a summer working in our nation's capital through the White House Internship Program. Below, Nora writes about her experience.
This summer I had the incredible opportunity to intern at the White House; I was placed in the Office of Scheduling and Advance (S&A), which handles the day-to-day schedule of President Obama and plans the big-picture ideas and logistics behind his future travel and any events off the White House grounds. S&A was a great place to learn about the inner workings of the executive branch because the President’s time is his most valuable asset! By learning about the logistics and politics that go into the President’s schedule, I was able to learn about what message and policies the President pushes, what groups of people he reaches, and what the administration values.
My tasks ranged from analyzing and responding to scheduling requests on behalf of the President to creating trip portfolios for staffers riding Air Force One internationally. I absolutely used many of the skills I learned from IGR—active listening and emotional intelligence are necessary in any work place. And although I sometimes found it hard to find a balance of social justice activism and expected professionalism, I feel (and hope!) that I challenged those I got to know with deeper questions related to not only the administration’s actions related to social change, but how our day-to-day actions add up to creating a more just society. My experience this summer is one I will never forget and I recommend that students of all different interests apply to the White House Internship Program. Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions: [email protected].