BILLYCHOW
Internship
For my internship I was lucky to have the opportunity to work for the California State Assembly under the 18th District Assemblymember Rob Bonta. I worked a total of 59 hours in the District Office or out tabling at events as shown below.
Date
Hours
3.5
3.5
3.5
3.5
3.5
3.5
4
7
7
7
6
7/13/15
7/16/15
7/20/15
7/26/15
7/27/15
7/30/15
8/3/15
8/6/15
8/10/15
8/22/15
8/28/15
Weekly Logs
Week of 7/13/15
My work hours were scheduled beforehand in the phone interview, I would work 1:30 pm to 5:00 pm on Mondays and 10:00 am to 5:00pm on Thursdays. Monday was my first day and right off the bat it was a little bit shocking for me, this was real government work not some structured program predesigned for students. I think it will take atleast a week for me to settle in to that fact. When I arrived on Monday I obtained my own keycard and an older intern showed me around the office, the state building, where to get the mail, and everything that was pertinent to what I would be doing. I was also given the rundown of the District Office and it's staff members as well as how to use the Legislative Database, Legislative Consituent Management System, the Assemblymember's public email, and of course the phone. Work involving the database and logging constituent input from emails was slow but easy enough, however I'll admit that I was very hesitant with the phone and answering calls, something I hope to improve on.
Week of 7/20/15
Monday this week felt pretty normal, I simply kept to the database, a list email assignment that I had, and the occasional phone call. Most of the interns here are college students here as a part of some summer program that they belong to but thankfully there is atleast one other intern that is around my age and is also still in highschool, we talk and fool around when there is time to. Still I see some of the other interns have constituent mediation cases that they handle and they sound very complicated and demanding, a task I don't feel comfortable taking on just yet. I do not come in this Thursday but I was informed that interns are required to sign up for at least five shifts at tabling events and I have two shifts coming up this weekend at the Park Street Art and Wine Festival. Of all the things I am hesitant about in the office, I am actually excited about the upcoming event.
Week of 7/27/15
The Art and Wine Festival was an interesting experience, there were some people who were interested in the resources we had on the table or people who had questions about what the State Assembly does. Some passersby expressed their discontent with the Assemblymember which served to remind me that regardless of personal opinion, I was to represent not only the Assemblymember but the state legislature as well. The rest of the week was pretty slow, there were no essential staff members around on Monday afternoon because of a meeting and so most of the interns did what they could organizing supplies. Thursday I was given what would be my first actual research assignment where I researched and compiled details about an Assisted Living Waiver.
Week of 8/3/15
This was probably my least favorite week of this internship thus far. I started my internship about halfway through the summer which meant that many of the interns that I got to work with and got along with had already fulfilled their quota for their internship programs, therefore this was the week that many of them completed their programs and left the office. Besides that there hasn't been anything too eventful or noteworthy in the office. I do understand that there is some sort of awards ceremony that we are putting together that I have completed a set of nametags for. I foresee a slight conundrum involving the evaluation for my internship due to what has been going on in terms of supervising personnel. Originally there was a director for interns but during the first couple weeks of my intership, she was away on vacation. Supervision was overtaken by a senior intern who is leaving by the end of this week. I'm also told that the director is also quitting in a week or two so getting someone to sign my internship has just gotten a little bit trickier.
Week of 8/10/15
I didn't realize until today that because there were so many interns that left the previous week, their unresolved cases had to be pushed forward to the remaining interns. That meant that whether or not I felt ready to take on cases I received one in my file this morning. My first case involved a constituent who has had several issues dealing with PG&E and although it was near resolved, it was a bit tense for me. All I really had to do was relay a sum of money that the constituent had to pay PG&E but it was very apparent that the constituent was dissatisfied and verbally angry. This case gave me some insight of what legislature does. In this particular instance it was something relatively menial and yet it is the office's job to help regardless. Anyways, today was the day for angry callers and I'm pretty confident that I dealt with them properly. This is one of my last days here in the office as I'm leaving for a week-long trip tomorrow and will only be back for a tabling event and one last Friday.
Week of 8/28/15
The tabling event this time was in the Oakland Chinatown and things were relatively smooth and uneventful as usual. The highlight of my six hours at the table was probably talking to a man who was obviously not a supporter of the Assemblymember. On my last day at the office it just so happened that I answered what would be my favorite call of the entire internship. Previously there were callers such as doctors and medical personnel that wanted to talk about an assembly bill but I had no other choice but to listen a try my best to jot down what they were saying because the office was missing a director responsible for health and medical related issues. It's the worst feeling to want to help someone but realize you are unequipped to assist. My favorite call involved a kindly old woman who called to ask about a birthday certificate that local legislature presents to people who have lived to be 100. Although she wasn't in the district that we covered, I was still able to help redirect her to the correct district office. In the end, it was a simple task on my part but it opened my eyes in a sense to how grateful people can be even if it is a small gesture or small task.
Political science is the major I've set my mind on for the the foreseeable future and this internship has proved to be an extremely valuable step towards my vision. Before my time with the assemblymember's office I had some experience with writing and drafting letters for a constituent group expressing concerns to legislative offices. Coincidentally, one of the responsibilities I got to undertake in the internship happened to be reading, sorting, and responding to similar constituent concerns. Overall I thought that my internship was a wonderful eye opening experience that has not only provided me with insight and skills but has also affirmed my decision to pursue Political Science/Public Service as my path.