Meet our Summer Fellow – Jenna Bucsak
My name is Jenna Bucsak, and I am one of the new interns here at the Rodel Foundation. I will be interning for about 12 weeks this summer, before returning to the University of Delaware to finish my Masters in Public Administration in the fall.
I began my undergraduate career at the University of Delaware as an International Relations major, but found myself seeking a way to make a difference closer to home. I added a second major in Public Policy, and during my time in this program, I have worked with some truly incredible people who have inspired me to pursue a career in public service. In 2012, I had the opportunity to work as a Legislative Fellow in the Delaware General Assembly. In this position I worked as a part-time non-partisan researcher for the House Majority Caucus and staffed the House Education Committee, in addition to the Labor and Telecommunications committees. Although I was interested in education policy prior to this assignment, the education committee allowed me to see the passion of others around a variety of issues and made me realize that I would like to continue to pursue education policy. As a Public Administration Fellow at UD, I have had the opportunity to work on a variety of different policy areas including education, broadband technology, Delaware libraries, among many others.
During my time at UD, I also have been very involved in community service. I have volunteered with a variety of organizations in Delaware, had the opportunity to mentor at a local elementary school, and was one of ten students who helped begin the University’s Alternative Spring Break Program. As part of this program, two other leaders and I led two disaster-relief focused trips during spring break which brought forty students to New Orleans, LA in 2011 and an additional forty to Bayboro, NC in 2012. We are extremely proud of what this program has become and hope that it will continue well into the future. In just three years the program has allowed 374 students to complete nearly 15,000 service hours in areas such as disaster relief, education for urban youth, food scarcity, and trail-building.
I’m excited to be here at the Rodel Foundation this summer, as education reform continues to be at the forefront of the state and national agendas. Through my previous experiences in education policy, education equality has become one of my main interests, as every student deserves a high-quality education and the opportunity to be the best they can be. I hope this internship experience will give me the opportunity to work on some projects that I have not been exposed to in the past, while helping me to better understand how to bring all stakeholders together to do what is best for children. I am truly excited for this experience!
Related Topics: Higher Education, internships, Public Administration, University of Delaware