SOCIAL WORK STUDENTS AT UH HONE THEIR
SKILLS IN AUSTIN
Legislative Internship Program Matches Students with Lawmakers
(HOUSTON, Feb. 15, 2005)— The offices of 5 Texas lawmakers
become the classrooms for 5 future political social workers from
Houston.
The students from the University of Houston’s Graduate School
of Social Work (GSSW) are spending this spring semester with the
legislators as part of the school’s Legislative Internship
Program.
“This is a remarkable opportunity for me,” Kathryn
McCarter said. She is spending this semester in the offices of Rep.
Melissa Noriega. “This is a chance to positively affect a
great number of people and influence laws that need to be changed,
all to help disadvantaged populations in Texas.” Other lawmakers
who are participating in the Legislative Internship Program are
Senator Mario Gallegos (Houston), Rep. Garnet Coleman (Houston),
Rep. Jessica Farrar (Houston) and Rep. Lon Burman (Fort Worth).
Staffing their offices will be UH students Kelly Foster, Demetra
Lopez, Brigitte Zabak and Rebecca Rosalez, respectively.
The 13-year-old program matches current GSSW students with lawmakers
for a semester. This year coincides with the 79th Texas Legislative
Session. Kathryn and her intern colleagues will track all bills
dealing with health, human services, the environment, consumer protection
and education. They create summaries of the bills and craft position
statements for the lawmaker they are assigned to.
“The GSSW Legislative Internship Program offers our students
a unique opportunity to work with the state legislature, gain a
more in-depth understanding of the political process and learn the
role social workers have in that process,” Ira Colby, dean
of the GSSW said.
The UH Graduate School of Social Work is one of a handful of social
work colleges in the country that offer legislative internships.
There are more than 30 students in policy-making internships in
Houston and Austin this semester. In previous years, students have
interned in Washington, D. C. congressional offices as well. Students
must apply for the legislative internships and commit to staying
in Austin for the duration of the legislative session on a fulltime
basis. They attend classes online and stay in touch with their professors
through weekly webcasts and online discussions. Many students go
on to pursue careers in political social work.
“Following their political internships, the vast majority
of GSSW students are hired into significant state and national legislative
positions,” Colby said. Alumni of the GSSW Legislative Internship
Program have served as chief of staff of state committees, legislative
directors in representatives’ offices, as well as governmental
relations staff for a variety of interests groups and organizations.”
For students like Kathryn, the internship is a first-hand view
of how the field of social work relates to the political process.
“I wanted to see how state government worked. This internship
program is invaluable,” Kathryn said. “When I graduate
in May, I’d like to stay in Austin and work in the political
realm in policy and advocacy. Eventually, I’d like to run
for state office.”
The GSSW was founded in 1968 and is the only school of social work
in Houston. Political Social Work is one of the five MSW specializations
offered by GSSW. The others are children and families, gerontological
social work, health care and mental health.
For more information of the UH Graduate School of Social Work, please
visit www.sw.uh.edu
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston, Texas’ premier metropolitan research
and teaching institution, is home to more than 40 research centers
and institutes and sponsors more than 300 partnerships with corporate,
civic and governmental entities. UH, the most diverse research university
in the country, stands at the forefront of education, research and
service with more than 35,000 students.
For more information about UH visit the universitys Newsroom at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.
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