My summer was both fun and educational, besides gaining specific knowledge in the areas of education policy and the media, I learned about the inner workings of The Brookings Institute, a policy research organization. I met and talked to a number of senior scholars on the Brookings staff and developed contacts with some of the most influential academics in the country.

This summer I was given the chance to deal one on one with individuals in the community. Whether it was tracking legislation and notifying constituents about the current situation of a bill, writing letters of recommendations, or helping people cut through the red tape of bureaucracy, I realized I was affecting people's lives directly. I thank IAPFE for giving me the chance to make a difference.

Working in Washington, D.C. was an amazing and unique experience. While my classmates were sitting at their computers debugging thousands of lines of code, I was attending power meetings, receptions with Nobel Prize Laureates, plays and concerts at the Kennedy Center and speeches by the First Lady. I would like to thank IAFPE for this opportunity, it has reinforced my desire and commitment to stay involved in politics throughout my career.

This summer was not only educational but also the most motivating experience I have ever been through. Because of my internship, I was offered a part time position with the Civil Investigation Division. Now I know for sure that the IAFPE really does fulfill its task of giving the younger generation a hand up into the world. Thank you very much for the summer of my life.

My previous political experiences could never have prepared me for what I undertook over the summer, this internship was a real eye-opener. I was thrust into the hub of politics, The White House, and expected to learn and react quickly, from the Mars Pathfinder Project, to Campaign Finance, to Education Reform, it was one issue after another. It was so exciting to be were all the action was, to have the insider's knowledge and be able to make a difference. Thank you IAFPE for giving me this incredible learning experience.

My summer as a IAFPE intern was fulfilling for the following reasons: first, I was able to travel to the Southwest for an experience that was completely different, second I was lucky to work with fascinating people who were as interested in teaching me as they were in doing their work and third, I was able to delve into a field of great interest in which I had little previous experience, namely public health and health policy. For all these reasons I left New Mexico with a wealth of knowledge in a specific field as well as a grounded understanding on the interfacing of medicine/public health, law and public policy.