CCNY's
Rosenberg/Humphrey Interns Continue Public Service Tradition
Felicia Roff,
the director, reports on an important CUNY student internship
program at City College.
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Congressman Stephen Horn (D-CA) and Fariha Khaliq.
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Until recently, City College junior Nsagha
Efiom planned to become a lawyer. However, after an internship
this past summer, which she described as "a life- changing
experience," Nsagha is now looking for a career that will combine
law with public policy and service. She learned about the City
College Rosenberg/Humphrey Internship Program through the
College's Honors Center, where Director Robin Villa and Coordinator
Lee Linde regularly advise CCNY's best students to broaden their
horizons by exploring public policy.
The Program follows in a long City College tradition of dedication
to public service. Indeed, inscribed on a plaque in Shepard
Hall, a neo-Gothic building that students pass through each
day, is the Ephebic Oath that all City College students recite
when they receive their diplomas. The oath concludes, "We
will strive to transmit this city. . .greater, better, and more
beautiful than it was transmitted to us."Today, City College
students are encouraged to extend the oath beyond "this
city" and strive to leave the world a better place than
the one they entered.
Rosenberg/Humphrey helps students to do just that. It was established
in 1984 by Marvin Rosenberg (Class of 1928), a deeply committed
political liberal who took up the challenge of public service
throughout his life. His close relationship with Senator Hubert
Humphrey, a champion of civil rights legislation and other liberal
causes, led to the birth of a program that translated Senator
Humphrey¬s national vision and Rosenberg's dedication into
a commitment to study public service that CCNY students continue
today.
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CCNY interns,
left to right: Nsagha Efiom, Wendy Prudencio, Christine
Appah, Oscar Warren Hunter, Fariha Khaliq, Aline Solange
Santos, Ray-Ann Farris, Igor Povolotskiy, Magundo Touray,
and Lily M. Hoffman, Director. Photo, Khalil Almustafa.
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Nsagha was accepted as one of the nine Rosenberg/Humphrey
Interns for 2001, and awarded a summer internship with the Constituency
for Africa (CFA) in Washington. Among her many projects was
assisting CFA in increasing the public's awareness of the HIV/AIDS
pandemic in Africa. Describing her internship experience, Nsagha
says, "I would not trade my experience at CFA for anything.
Before departing for D.C., I had no knowledge of the severity
of HIV/AIDS in Africa. Now, I'm deeply committed to increasing
awareness of this pandemic and have gained first-hand knowledge
of how foreign policy is strongly influenced by organizations
such as CFA."
For eight weeks this past summer—thanks to the continuing
support of CCNY alumni, the Board of Directors, Program Director
Lily M. Hoffman, and Assistant Director Kevin Foster—Nsagha
was joined by six other CCNY students in the capital and two
students who completed internships in New York City. All R/H
interns receive a stipend, and those in Washington were housed
at George Washington University.
Magundo Touray, a senior, spent her summer interning at The
Brookings Institute. She coordinated an event for the Presidential
Appointee Initiative, drafted press releases and media follow-ups
for Brookings scholars, and designed the web companion for senior
scholar Joyce Ladner's new book, The New Urban Leaders.
Even with her busy internship schedule, Magundo took advantage
of Washington's international job seminars and networking opportunities.
Through her Brookings Institute supervisors, Magundo was able
to meet with representatives of the World Bank, the United Nations,
Department of State, Trans-Africa Forum, Africare, and the International
Monetary Development Group to explore future internships and
full-time positions.
CCNY Acting Dean of Social Science Vivien C. Tartter champions
the program, and each year has recognized a significant growth
in maturity when interns return.They all come back to CCNY with
a renewed excitement for learning, and a better understanding
of the tools necessary to make the world a better place.
Junior Igor Povolotskiy interned this summer at the Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR). He reported on press conferences
led by Representatives Jerrold Nadler and Barney Frank regarding
faith-based initiatives, as well as a conference presented by
Senator Hillary Clinton on racial profiling. Igor was awarded
the Arnold Aronson Fellowship, LCCR's fellowship to honor the
most promising R/H intern. He reflected in his journal, "The
internship taught me to live, coexist, and to do so independently.
. .Most importantly, it led me to think about my future, about
who I am, and the place I choose for myself in this world."
The interns were welcomed back to campus from their summer of
discovery, and attended a pizza party with CCNY's new president,
Dr. Gregory H. Williams. Dr. Williams listened to the students'experiences
and reminisced about his own awakening as a young adult to the
challenges and rewards of public policy and service. "These
internships represent democracy in its purist form—access
based on ability. That's been a primary mission of City College
from its very inception.
Although the primary beneficiaries of the program are the students,
the professors involved receive personal rewards as well. Assistant
Director Kevin Foster says,Mentoring CCNY students for Rosenberg/Humphrey
has helped me to become a better teacher. It has allowed me
to really get to know a small group of students each year and
help them find their individual paths to success. We don¬t
just drop them off in Washington and say ‘Good luck!’
We interact several times a week via Blackboard, a distance
learning Web site, and exchange ideas, concerns and daily life
experiences." Professor Foster and a 2000 intern, Adriana
Espinoza, received the annual CCNY mentorship award for their
work together. She is applying to Ph.D. programs in economics
for fall 2002.
Fariha Khaliq (CCNY'03), a computer science major, proved to
be a valuable staff member during her summer internship at the
Subcommittee on Government Efficiency, Financial Management,
and Intergovernmental Relations. She focused her internship
on the government's role in computer security and reviewed the
top ten computer security issues that will have an impact within
the next two years on Congressional deliberations. Fariha also
redesigned the Subcommittee's Hearings Web Page, edited the
2000 Congressional Report Card on Computer Security and developed
the Subcommittee's Systems Software Questionnaire. She wrote
in her last journal entry, "One of the many things I learned
about myself is that even though I'm not a political science
major, I wouldn't mind becoming a Congresswoman or Senator!"
For more information about The Rosenberg/Humphrey Program, please
visit the website at www.ccny.cuny.edu/rh or call 212.650.6809.
Ed. Note: Other opportunities for public service internships
in the capital exist through the CUNY-wide Edward T. Rogowsky
Internship in Government and Public Affairs program. |
