Meet Penn Hill Group’s summer interns, Darine Bailey and Katherine Knox.  Darine is a senior at University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and Katherine is a sophomore at Swarthmore College. See our interviews with Darine and Katherine below to learn more about them and all that they bring to our office. Welcome, Darine and Katherine!

Darine Bailey

Why did you decide to spend a semester in D.C.?

At Michigan, I am apart of the Public Service Internship Program (PSIP). This program enhances students’ chances to receive rigorous internships in Washington, D.C., helps students to build fundamental skills used in the future and grants uniqueness. Because of this program, I, a foreigner to DC, was able network with powerful people that have the same interest. This life changing program has granted me with hope, success and a better understanding of my career path within public policy. Although this program didn’t provide any internships, I knew DC was a place to learn, ask questions, gain mesmerizing experience in politics and call home.

What do you hope to do or learn during this internship?

I applied to Penn Hill Group because of their rapid and collaborative environment. I knew I would be able to learn more legislation around education, and I could enhance m

y studies on the similarities between education and incarceration. I also look forward to networking with powerful people within this firm and learning more about their interest in education.

What interests you most about education?

As an African American woman from the Gold Coast of Chicago, my siblings and I were afforded privileges and opportunities usually unknown to People of Color (POC) in Chicago. Although my family and I faced several challenges, I felt like I grew up in a “perfect” world. As high school approached, I became aware of how my experiences were not shared or granted to POC, that maybe I was an anomaly in my world. I grew curious about why some POC were segregated to certain areas, given inadequate stereotypes, receive poor education and received little to no aid, so I left my world, and opted to learn from a community that wasn’t my own. There, I began to dig deeper by reading books about Chicago’s segregation and its neighborhoods, discovering that these are communities filled with minority families who have been mistreated and forgotten. Schools were shut down in high populated yet poor neighborhoods, books were generations old, and they were not given the correct funds to perform better. Yet, these neighborhoods had high incarceration levels.

The education quality in Chicago ranged from exceptional to extremely poor. Several families were denied essential care and given empty promises from community “leaders.” I, then, realized a perfect world is not granted to everyone. Speechless and astonished, I knew I could not settle with this absurdity.

What are some of your future goals?

In the future, I will become a Civil Rights attorney. I will continue to aid people who experienced inequality and become a voice for the voiceless.

What’s something exciting you’ve recently gotten to do?

I have spent my winter semester with University of Michigan’s Wolverine Pathways. Wolverine Pathways is a program that aids over 200 students from Detroit, Southfield, and Ypsilanti school districts in Math, Science, Public Policy, English, and research classes. There, I have supported teachers for 7th-12th graders in Saturday enrichment classes to prepare underserved students for the University of Michigan. Now, I am more equipped to facilitate group discussions about identity and community to better aid the future generation in self-awareness and community involvement.

Katherine Knox

Why did you decide to spend a semester in D.C.?

I have done previous advocacy work at the local and state level for STEM education, and I thought this would be a good opportunity to understand the issue at the Federal level, because as I’ve been learning, education reform is most effective when all three levels work in tandem.

What do you hope to do or learn during this internship?

This is my first internship, so besides learning the ropes of an office environment, I hope to have a better understanding of all the players who want to influence education policy, and how they accomplish that. I also am excited to learn the ins and outs of existing education legislation and funding, to have a better understanding of where there is room for change.

What interests you most about education?

I went to a good public high school in an affluent area, but my high school didn’t offer computer science classes. Even after a group of students and I successfully advocated for our school to offer a class (after I graduated), only young men enrolled. This sparked my interest how our education system creates an environment where young women, especially of color, do not pursue computer science, and how that can be changed.

What are some of your future goals?

I plan to continue to find ways to personally and systematically encourage people from underrepresented communities in STEM to pursue those fields. I will also continue to pursue computer science, and I hope to find a way to merge my interests in advocacy and coding after graduation.

What’s something exciting you’ve recently gotten to do?

I have been enjoying exploring DC. I recently saw an exhibit opening at the Katzen Arts Center that featured the work of female artists in DC from the past 50 years. I have also enjoyed reading Venture Girls by Dr. Cristal Glangchai, which has been challenging my ideas about how to best involve more girls in STEM.