This internship taught me my calling is politics and really where I need to be is Washington DC. It made me that much more excited for college because of the opportunities that will come with it. I am incredibly grateful to have had such an empowering experience. It gave me hope for the future of this country knowing there are people going into politics for the right reason: to help people. In politics, who you know is everything and I made some very strong connections at this internship. I observed so much passion in the workplace. All of the staffers and Sara believe in the dream. I think I am prepared to be successful in politics because I have the passion and drive; that is not something that can be taught. All I need now is the education. I am super excited to see where my life takes in me in politics. I really want to leave my mark on this world by getting voices heard who have never been heard before. Sara is an incredible role model to me and I admire her very much. I am thankful to have gotten to experience this journey with such a strong feminist; she made it clear that girls can. It is time for a new voice in Washington. After this campaign, I have no doubt the future is female. So many girls are off the sidelines because our future isn't being handed to us. We have no other choice but to DEMAND it! We are louder then ever before so, I wish anybody trying to stop us good luck!
For my “Final Photo Essay”, I chose to make the theme feminism. The Sara Jacobs campaign got so many women off the sidelines demanding a better future, ensuring they had equality. Inspired by the #METOO movement, it was very important to Sara that girls felt inspired, she wanted every little girl to know they can. Sara Jacobs is a revolutionary for women young and old, I am honored to have gotten to work for such a progressive campaign.
How My Work as An Intern was meaningful to My education:For me, this internship gave me real-world experience in the field I want to go into. I learned so much about the crazy inclusive world that is politics. It is truly all about who you know and I met a lot of people who will be great connections down the road. I always knew I wanted to have my own campaign one day and now I have a better understanding of the road I need to take to get there. Most politicians start as field organizers. I never even truly understood what a "field organizer" was. I want to be a field organizer myself in college. Field organizers run off of passion, it is an 8:00 AM to 11:30 PM job and you make a salary. I learned to not just go into politics with the intention of climbing the ladder because all the jobs (even not the known ones) are crucial to a successful campaign. You can change the world without a key position, everybody has the power to leave their mark. I also learned how the most common political data software work. This will be very useful for me in the future. This campaign proved to me there is no mold that a politician should be. In this day and age, individuality is very respected. I have a lot of new ideas for how my campaign will run one day. I am very thankful for this milestone in my career path. What I learned about my Own Work From My Internship Project:I learned I am a person fueled off of passion. My work ethic improves rapidly when it comes to something I actually care about. I have been so incredibly dedicated to this campaign and it shows in my work. I have been very well respected because my work is so full of love. I have an enthusiasm for change that cannot be taught or forced. With this, I feel very empowered to make a difference, not only in my community but the world. I have not had a day off in pushing three weeks but I am not upset about it at all, I am dreading internship coming to a close and having to go to school instead of working on the campaign. I am able to relate to people very well on the phone, I can read them then figure out how to approach them. I have a lot of new found self-confidence thanks to how praised I am among my coworkers and it feels very good. It makes me feel like I have a lot of value to the campaign but, at the end of the day it is not about me, it is about Sara. There are so many people to learn from in the campaign headquarters, I am doing my best to soak it in like a sponge. New Appreciations I have Developed as an Intern:I have a new found appreciation for people, all types of people, people young and old. I have had the opportunity to talk to so many civically engaged people and it is so incredibly powerful. It makes me realize there are so many people out there for me to fight for, there are so many voices feeling so unheard. It is empowering seeing so many oppressed people who are used to being shoved to the sidelines get out to demand change. Being with such a hugely diverse group of people made me realize how minuscule my network of people is. It makes me want to go out of my way to say hi to somebody new every day. The stories I hear from people on the campaign trail are all so beautiful. I am definitely a social butterfly and do the best in a diverse environment. How this changed my Plans for after High School:This internship confirmed my calling is politics. It also opened my eyes to the fact going to college in Washington DC needs to be a priority for me. This is an industry built off of connections and DC is where to gain them. I have been so incredibly happy working full-time on this campaign and this is just a glimpse of what I could be doing in DC while I am earning my political science and gender studies degrees. I am very excited for my future. I always was, but this internship made me realize just how capable I am when it comes to being successful in politics simply because my politics are so pure; I am in it for the right reason. I want everybody heard and represented. No human being should be above another and I want America to be a place I can be proud of living in. What I learned about Relationships:I learned outside of a high school setting that there are tons of kids just like me out there who dream of leaving a mark on this world. I have made friendships that will last a long time because I have so much in common with the friends I have made. These friends one day will be my connections. I have loved the people I have worked with and have an enormous amount of respect for each and every one of them. I have learned that when it comes to friends, you don't need to stick to your core group, it is good to venture out. There are some really cool people out there you may never meet but, you should go out of your way to meet everyone you can. Sitting glued to your phone is not a way to be open to the calling of the universe. I am working on spending less time on social media and having face to face communication with people since it is the most powerful. When it comes to recruiting, phone banking, we are successful one in every forty calls but, when canvassing (knocking on doors), it is one in every ten houses. This proves how much more valuable human to human contact is.
For my Photo Essay "starter set", I chose to make it a slideshow video to truly get the emotion I feel when coming to work each day across to the viewer. Some of these photos were taken out on the field canvassing, some were taken at the office, and some were taken at my house with my guinea pig Ted (who has always been my biggest fan). This has been a surreal experience and I am very thankful to be apart of the Sara Jacobs team. This internship gives me hope for Washington and my career path in politics. I have a dream that I will change the world, making it a better place. I am confident this dream WILL come true.
How I have Advocated for Myself:I have put my money where my mouth is when it comes to advocating for myself at the office. The staffers all want to give me work to do since they know I will produce it fast while still maintaining the quality we want Sara represented by. The toughest part for me so far has been figuring out how to work the political data softwares since truthfully I am not a computer science kid. So, I have asked questions and sought help from my colleagues. Nobody treats me like I am simply an “intern”. Since I am reflective of the campaigns targeted voter, a young female democrat, they really value my opinion and me as a person. They make it very clear they want me involved. Sara, who always sits across the way from me, told me to never hesitate to ask her if I need anything. Marvin has been an extraordinary mentor and encourages me every step of the way. How I am Following Advice In "How to Be An Intern":I have been following the advice from "How to be an Intern". I genuinely want to help which makes me an even better intern. My heart is in the right place since I am a believer in Sara and what she stands for, this shines through with my work ethic. The first time I talked to Sara was at the Women’s March in San Marcos and her poster has been hung in my room since. This enthusiasm for my company makes my work a whole lot purer. I am proud of how I have been doing as an intern. I have been getting a lot of positive feedback from my colleagues and am already dreading this internship coming to a close! However, I asked Sara and she said she would be happy to keep me on as long as I like! I know I am being a good intern because the day flies by so quickly. I stay busy the entire time while benefiting the campaign. My work will help Sara get elected!
What I Plan On Doing/ Creating:I plan on essentially working as a staffer and doing everything I can to help Sara Jacobs get elected in the June 5th primary. My “final product” will be getting my boss, the youngest female congresswoman, elected. I am ensuring people all over district 49 are aware of this hip, modern candidate. The thing about Sara is since she is just now testing the waters of politics, she does not have as many followers on social media as the candidates who's feet are deep in the sand. I will be helping her with public outreach specifically young female democrats since they are her targeted voters. I will be doing various tasks such as cutting turf (which is essentially making manageable lists for volunteers to go knock door to door), canvassing (the act of going door to door), working closely with the media to ensure Sara is being shown in the best light possible, phone-baking (calling targeted voters), managing and shifting volunteers, using many software such as PDI (Political Data Incorporated) to analyze and break down data, and anything else that can help out the office! I am a super passionate member of the team. My role is the “Teen Outreach Coordinator” and I am excited because I am essentially looking for high school students like myself who want to involved in politics. I have talked to many kids who dream of having a seat for themselves in Congress one day and it is truly a breath of fresh air to see I am not the only one out there with that dream. What I need For It To Be Awesome:In order for my role working on the campaign to be successful, I need to eat, sleep, and breathe Sara Jacobs. I do not want to come off as a salesperson, I want to come off as a “stereotypical high school girl” in order for me to be relatable. This is different for me because, I always try to be something extraordinary, above and beyond the stereotype of what I should be but, in this case being “just a high school girl” very much so plays to my advantage. I will need to be a very committed staffer which I have been. I am working seven days a week over eight hours per day. I am not doing this because they are requiring me to, I want to go in and help as much as humanly possible. My mentor, Marvin, worries I will get burnt out but I assured him I won't; this is just how I get when it comes to my passions. This is more than just an internship for me, it is a step toward my future. My Mentor Marvin told me half-jokingly when he runs for Congress, I can be his campaign manager. The connections I am making in this office will help guide my political future. This is also about the future of my party, as a strong democratic, it is important to me we are represented by people like Sara who understand the times and realizes how much of America is fueled off of outdated views/ values. The older politicians, who can barely even use social media, can’t grasp what it is like to be a millennial in this day and age. What Support I need & Who I Need It From:My team supports me a lot. There are about twelve paid staffers who are at the office 8:00 am to 12:00 am. It is an office filled with civic leaders. These employees put in way more hours than is required to earn their salary paycheck just as I am putting in way more hours than is required to fulfill my internship requirement. Sara has been an awesome role model to look into in the office. She has had meals with me for the purpose of offering me life advice as well as advice for another young woman who wants to go into politics. She told me I reminded her a lot of herself then offered to write me a letter of recommendation for my future endeavors; this made me feel very good, to say the least. She has given me connections to Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. She has very much taken me under her wing and I am super thankful for that. I think she appreciates how much I want to be there since often times high school volunteers need community service hours as a graduation requirement and do the bare minimum. She has picked up on the fact that I want to be there more than my required hours and it is safe to say she has a lot of respect for me as I do for her. Marvin is constantly reminding me of self-care. Often times, I go the whole day without even eating just because I am so immersed in the workload and don’t want to take the time for myself, we are down to the final days before the primary: every second counts. Marvin is reminding me to take care of myself. Marvin has supported me a lot. He has gone out of his way to get to know me and give me hugs of encouragement. We get the job done while talking about the newest games on PS4. Emilie (the campaign manager) runs the show. She runs a very tight ship but it keeps everybody in line. I have a lot of respect for Emilie. She is very good at what she does and her experience backs that up as she was a key staffer on the Hillary Clinton for presidency campaign. I am honestly star struck by all of these peoples experiences. Most of the team is not native to San Diego but ended up on the team due to progressive job board openings.
Marvin Andrade: Field Coordinator @ Sara Jacobs for CongressQ: What should I know about you before I start working here? A: Before joining the team, I did nonprofit work for Model United Nations. I organized conferences for high school and college students through UCSD. I am passionate about this campaign because as a member of the LGBTQ community, I know I can count on Sara to ensure my rights are a priority since it hits her at a personal level being Sara's middle sibling is gender conforming and her youngest sibling is a transgender male. Q: What is you job title? A: My job title is "Field Coordinator" basically, I make sure people are knocking on doors for Sara. It is my responsibility to get out the vote! Q: What are your main duties and responsibilities? A: I have a lot of tasks and they differ from a day to day basis but, my main duty is to organize all of our interns/ volunteers. This is very rewarding to get to talk to so many civic leaders within our community. Q: Why did you choose to work here? A: I finished organizing my MUN conference in Japan and had to find a way to make some money. I wanted to join a campaign team and had been following Sara for a long time. I knew she was the one I wanted to support so, I reached out to Emilie (our campaign manager) and luckily it worked out since they just had a team member have to leave for personal reasons. Q: How did you end up doing the job that you do? A: I essentially filled the shoes of a preview team member taking all of his responsibilities. It was a challenging learning curve but I am glad I did it. Q: What skills do you think are necessary for your position? A: Well, I used to think I was a good people person until I started phone banking. I guess you could say it requires thick skin because it is a lot of rejection. You have to learn how to be a salesperson without selling anything. In order to be successful in my job, you have to believe in the struggles. Your passion has to override the heartbreak. Q: How did you acquire these skills? A: I Acquired these skills through survival. In order to successfully do my position, it takes practice. I have practiced a lot. I still am not perfect but, luckily everybody in this work place learns from one and other. I pride myself on learning daily, in your few days, I have already learned from you! Q: Do you consider this job satisfying? A: Of course, very satisfying. This job is fueled off of passion, we want change, we believe in the people. We are drinking the kool-aid and believe in the brand of Sara Jacobs. Q: Is there anything you wish you knew about work when you were my age? A: The sky is the limit. Just keep following your passions, I know just from what I have seen in you you will go very far in the world of politics. Q: What is the purpose of this organization? A: Our goal is to give the 49th district the best candidate, so we have to get Sara elected. Our purpose is to get as many community members involved in the election as possible. Q: What does it take to be successful in this line of work? A: Don't fear rejection, it is not personal. People will accuse you of being a salesperson but, you are not selling them anything but a good candidate. Also, don't take yourself too seriously. Something we have going for us at this campaign is we are millinials therefor we are cute in the peoples eyes. Q: What advice do you have about working here? A: Don't be afraid to ask questions, we are all here for the same reason. We all believe in the dream. We are all connected through our hope. If you succeed, I am succeeding. I ask a million questions everyday, it is the only way to learn. Make mistakes, it is apart of the process. Q: How important is it to get along with people in this organization? A: It is a key factor in being successful here. We are asking people for favors. There is a way to talk to people and I think you have picked that up. Always ask them how they are doing, it is not fake either; we do care about how they are. Always give people options and avoid yes or no questions. Guilt trip people, use being a high school girl to your advantage! Q: Why Sara? A: Sara is my best bet at equality. Sara supports the LGBTQ community and I want more people like me in Congress. I am 24 years old and these old stuck in their ways politicians are not representing me. ReflectionI am having an amazing time at the internship. Tomorrow night, I am hosting an event "Dinner with Sara" specifically for high school students to get to come out and meet the future youngest congresswomen. This aligns with my passion for getting the youth involved in politics. The team has all embraced me with open arms. I have decided to work seven days a week about nine-hour days because I believe in the dream. Sara is incredible, she has been so kind to me. She makes me feel so valued and I want to do everything I can to support her in her journey to Washington. I have had all types of experiences phone banking but the mean people truly do make great stories! One story is I called somebody and said "Hi, my name is Carly and I am a high school intern calling from Sara Jacobs for Congress" and she rebutted by saying "lol" and hung up the phone on me as she made a snide remark about kids thinking they could have a voice in government. Little did she know my team poked fun at that conversation for hours. I have also had super powerful conversations with older women who really appreciate young blood being involved in politics. I am learning so much about life on the campaign, it makes me that much more excited about having my own campaign one day. I have learned how to use so many political data softwares. I am in heaven! Marvin is an incredible mentor. Although he is not much older than me, I look up to him immensely. He works just about twenty-four hours, seven days a week yet always has a smile. He offers me food and drinks every day. It is a great environment and I am thrilled to be apart of the team!
Being on the campaign trail, my first impression is that it is a very passionate, uplifting environment. Since it is a progressive campaign, the team craves change in Washington. I think it will be a very exciting couple of weeks with Sara going up in the poles. Right now, we are in third place by two points. I think we will get there, however! It is time to flip the 49th! Let's paint it blue! My colleagues are all very unique individuals. It is a diverse group that clearly believes in a melting pot. They are all very positive and believe in one and other. Remember, we are all working towards the same goal, electing Sara as the youngest congresswoman of all time. What strikes me the most about the work I am doing is that it is fueled by volunteers. This is a grassroots campaign and I am doing a lot of outreach relying on Sara supporters rallying behind her. I am most excited about getting to know Sara and leaving my mark on this campaign. The only thing I am a little bit worried about is rejection with phone banking but, I will be fine. Overall, I had an amazing expirience day one and am thankful for the team making me feel so incredibly apart of things. I already put a Sara Jacobs sticker on my computer and wear a Sara Jacobs button with pride.
I had a great first day at the office working for Sara Jacobs: the youngest woman to run for Congress. Jacobs is attempting to represent the 49th district. I met with her, Emilie (the campaign manager), and Marvin (the field organizer). With the exception of Marvin, this is an all-female campaign team. As a young woman who wants to go into politics, this progressive environment is a very inspiring place for me to do my internship. A typical work day on the campaign trail involves A LOT of outreach. I will be planning community events, logging data of voters (targeting young women aged eighteen to twenty-five years old), and managing social media. On day one, I was already working on Sara Jacobs memes which I will be attaching below this post. This business does not require a lot of work policies because it is an office built on passion. People are there because they want to be not because of the dollar bill. It is a very casual, laid-back environment despite the crazy, busy lifestyle of going door to door getting the word out. I am very excited to fulfill my role: the teen outreach coordinator. My goal is to get more millennials involved in politics! |
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