Students with legislative internships won't have any homework or exams this semester, but they will help lawmakers pass bills.
ASU students Amelia Horton and Rosie Cisneros are working full time with lawmakers as they spend this semester at the state Capitol.
Horton, a political science junior, works in Senate research on the Health Committee.
"Every minute, I am learning something new," Horton said. "It's cool to learn about the process and how it actually works."
Horton said she was probably learning more as an intern than she would be in class, but it is more time-consuming during the day -- she works from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. every weekday.
Interns are assigned bills that they research and present to senators in committee and caucus. Then, they watch as people testify, debate and vote.
"It's really cool to see your work progress through each stage. That is the most exciting part for me," Horton said.
Presenting the bills was a little nerve-racking at first, Horton added, but after the first few committee meetings, she began to relax.
"The Health Committee is huge and people always come in from the public," she said.
Horton said she found out about the internship opportunity when a postcard was mailed to her just one week before the deadline.
"I scrambled around, got everything together, and applied," Horton said. "Then it was like a waiting game."
Horton first interviewed with a panel of about 25 people, she said.
"There were people from ASU, the Senate, the House, the governor's office, the secretary of state's office, the Supreme Court, and they sat around and asked questions," she said.
After an orientation and another interview, she found out she would be spending the spring semester at the Capitol.
There are about 50 interns working in the House and Senate. The interns receive a $4,200 stipend plus a tuition waiver.
The week begins with committee on Monday, where they present bills. Next is agenda setting, which states what will be heard in the next committee.
Over the next few days, they research the bills and print out fact sheets, which summarize what the bill does and provide background information. Horton is involved with researching, writing and distributing fact sheets, as well as working on amendments.
"It takes a lot of effort putting those fact sheets together. Everything has to be double checked, and all of the statements have to be true," Horton said.
Horton said she loves the process and continues to learn new things every day.
"I think, honestly, everything we do is really cool," she added.
Rosie Cisneros, a political science and journalism senior, decided to apply after she received an e-mail about the opportunity.
"I am pursuing a career in law, but later on I would like the option to do something in politics," she said.
Cisneros, who is also a former State Press opinion editor, works for the Democratic research staff. The committees are assigned an analyst, who goes over the bills, talks to people and analyzes how different groups may be affected by the bills.
Cisneros said working with the Democratic research staff has sharpened her political views.
"I am a lot more partisan now because of it," she added.
Reach the reporter at laura.graham@asu.edu.
