1. Carinna Arvizo graduated from El Dorado High School in El Paso, Texas. She graduated as fifth in her class and is a recipient of the International Baccalaureate Diploma. At El Dorado, Carinna participated in debate, Academic Decathlon and wrote for Flair Magazine. At Dartmouth College, Carinna wishes to major in English and Romance Languages. She actively participates on campus, and is involved with The Class Council of 2014 and Student Health Services. She has studied abroad twice because she never had the opportunity to travel. She wishes to become fluent in Portuguese and Italian. Carinna is undecided about her plans after graduating from Dartmouth College, but wishes to pursue a job in education reform or become a high school English teacher.
Carinna was funded by The Rockefeller Center for a Spring 2012 Internship, with generous support from the John French Memorial Internship Fund.
Executive Summary from Carinna’s final report:
This past spring, I interned with my local congressman, Silvestre Reyes, in Washington DC. Congressman Reyes is an eighth term member of the United States House of Representatives, the former Chairman of House Intelligence Committee, and is a ranking member of the Armed Forces Committee, Foreign Affairs Committee, and Veterans Affairs Committee.
During my internship, my tasks ranged from daily administrative tasks to legislative work. I helped conduct research, organize information packets, and track legislative topics, briefings, hearings and events assigned by the staff. I also conducted informative congressional tours and performed office duties. I worked closely with the legislative assistant and legislative director on gathering information on women’s issues, such as researching the Violence Against Women Act and the Prenatal Discrimination Act.
“Because of this internship, I have decided to pursue a career in politics.”
[JOHN FRENCH MEMORIAL FUND PUBLIC POLICY INTERN PROFILE]

2. I initially interned with the Congressman because I wanted to learn more about the legislative aspect of education reform. In high school, I did a research internship that focused on attrition rates in El Paso high schools. My previous experience as a research intern helped me understand the complications of education reform, but I never had the opportunity to work on the legislative aspect of education. I became very passionate about education reform, and I was persuaded to intern with my Congressman. However, during my time on the Hill there were very few bills that addressed education reform, and several controversial bills on women’s reproductive rights and domestic violence. Since I have always been interested in these issues, I asked my supervisor if I could change the focus of my internship from education reform to women’s reproductive rights and domestic violence.
Throughout my internship, there were several hearings and bills that discussed women’s rights to reproductive healthcare and domestic violence. I was asked to attend these hearings and to research these bills, specifically the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the Prenatal Discrimination Act (PRENDA). I had to study and learn the language of these bills, and how they would affect people on a local and national level. I was also given the chance to write the Statement for the Record on VAWA, which was published in the CQ Today.
At the beginning of my internship I decided to do three things: take advantage of my internship to the fullest extent, be a proactive intern, and work hard on all of my assignments. As a result, I gained the staffers’ trust, and they began to assign me more challenging tasks. Since I took advantage of my internship, I was able to learn more and better understand how politics actually work on the Hill.
This internship was a great opportunity for me, and helped me define my goals in the future. Because of this internship, I have decided to pursue a career in politics. This was one my most instructive and productive terms, and I would like to thank the Rockefeller Center and the John French Memorial Internship for giving me the chance to work on the Hill.
Carinna Arvizo ’14 with Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX) during her Spring 2012 internship.