Observations about the Value of a Legislative Internship

NACTA Journal, Jun 2005 by Sterns, James A, Manley, Kathy, Olexa, Michael T, Fairchild, Gary, Wysocki, Allen F

A third issue that must be addressed is the potential conflict between the academic calendar and the legislative calendar. Course schedules, particularly for graduate courses, may be limited and inflexible. Some courses may only be offered once per year or even less frequently. Undergraduate courses may be sequenced and a missed course could delay graduation by 12 months or more. Clearly, potential conflicts between an internship and a student's program of study need to be anticipated and resolved before the internship is approved.

A final issue is to determine if the "political" dimension of a legislative internship could impede or compromise the learning experience. Prior research by Stonecash, et al. (1988) suggests that partisan politics do not distract from the experiences of interns. In analyzing the New York Assembly Intern Program, the authors noted that, "?intern satisfaction was assessed by compatibility of the match between intern and legislator partisan affiliation (Republican intern and legislator or Democrat intern and legislator, for example, in contrast with a Republican intern and Democratic legislator). The extent of compatibility had no impact on satisfaction (p. 28). " A similar conclusion is drawn concerning the student in this case study. As party affiliation had no direct bearing on the student's experience, this variable apparently is not of critical importance when planning legislative internships.

Summary

This case study indicates that a legislative internship can offer a student an experiential, active learning activity that enhances and broadens an academic program of study. Though the benefits of a legislative internship as compared to a more traditional company-based, private sector internship are somewhat different for all parties involved, the importance of the political process and the policy environment to agriculture suggests that the benefits of a legislative internship are growing in importance.

Presuming that this case study is indicative of benefits and experiences other students would have with similarly designed legislative internships, students from most academic disciplines within Colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources would benefit from such an experience. Whether students are aspiring to work in production agriculture, agricultural education and extension, or international agribusiness, the relative importance of the political process and the pervasiveness of the policy environment continue to distinguish the agricultural sector from other sectors in the U.S. economy. Hence, the authors recommend that Colleges and individual academic units should consider broadening their ongoing internship programs to include more policy-oriented internships like the one described in this article.

Literature Cited

Ciofalo, A. 1989. Legitimacy of internships for academic credit remains controversial. Journalism Educator 43(Winter): 25-31.

Fitt, D. X. and M. Heverly. 1990. Involving the private sector with higher education. Jour, of Cooperative Education 27(3): 64-72.