Nealy Harnsberger ’13 and Caitlin Moriarty ’13 are interning in Washington D.C. this semester as part of the Washington Center Program.
Nealy uses her Russian skills daily as an intern at the Open World Project, where she works with delegates from former Soviet Republics, including Georgia and Ukraine. Her office is located in the Library of Congress. In several weeks, Nealy will be traveling to Denver for a week-long workshop with a delegation of Kazakh bloggers.
Caitlin is an intern at the Woodrow Wilson Center, where she works as a research assistant on two projects: the first looks at China’s diplomatic relationships during the Cold War with the U.S., the Soviet Union, and North Korea; the second looks at bio-weapons non-proliferation programs in the former Soviet Union and globally. As part of her internship she also has the opportunity to attend Russian-related lectures and events.
“Participating in this internship has given me an opportunity to take what I know and apply it in a practical way, without the structured guidance of a college classroom, and this experience would be useful for students with a variety of interests. DC has so much more than government.” -Caitlin Moriarty
“After studying Russian in the classroom for almost 7 years, I have really enjoyed putting my Russian to use in a professional setting and meeting delegates from the various post-Soviet countries. Talking with the delegates helps me to put things into perspective and get a taste for their culture, while they learn from me about various American cultural aspects. The delegates often ask me about the American education system and leisure activities for young professionals. I also really like attending various lectures and discussions in the DC metro area that pertain to post-Soviet countries, such as hearing President Saakashvili talk about the relations between Georgia and the US. ” – Nealy
As part of the Washington Center Program, students are housed in apartments located about a 20-minute walk from the capitol building.
For more information on how to apply: http://www.dickinson.edu/academics/resources/washington-center/