Notes from the Field: Terren Klein '17

Student Intern: Terren Klein ‘17

Internship Organization:
US Senate, Office of Senator Jeanne Shaheen

How would you describe your employer in one paragraph? What’s the elevator pitch?
My employer is Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the Democratic, senior US senator for the State of New Hampshire. She has served in the United States Senate since 2009 and is a member of the Senate Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Relations, Appropriations, and Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Her mission along with her staff is to hear, represent, and serve the citizens of New Hampshire.

What are your specific responsibilities in the organization?
As an intern, many of my duties in the office focus on providing administrative support for the rest of the staff. This includes advising or referring them to the proper staffer constituent callers on governmental services and political issues, drafting letters of correspondence and speaking with constituents on behalf of Senator Shaheen, and cataloging media clips into the computer distribution system.

How did you feel on the first day of your internship?
On the first day of my internship, I felt welcomed and inspired by my supervisor. We spent the whole five hours talking about myself and my personal pursuits, Senator Shaheen, my supervisor's history, and the importance of the constituency work that is performed within the office. My supervisor's rationale for the unconventional welcome was that if I was going to be spending so much of my time in the office over the term, I should understand why it is I am doing so. I wholeheartedly agreed, and I knew right from the onset that this would be a special experience.

What is your favorite part of the internship so far?
Beyond the wisdom I pick up from daily interactions with my supervisor, one of my favorite parts of the internship experience has been the opportunity to meet many high profile political figures. Over the course of the past six weeks, I have attended a house party with Presidential Candidate Hilary Clinton and had a five minute conversation with her, spoken with Senator Shaheen, Congresswomen Kuster and Minority Leader Pelosi at a New Hampshire Democratic Party Dinner, and meet Governor Hassan at an event in Claremont. It is a quite surreal experience to have one on one encounters with names you read about in the papers constantly and the see on television.

Broadly speaking, what do you hope to achieve by the end of your internship?
I hope to gain as much insight regarding New Hampshire politics as possible and to improve my writing ability as it pertains to the letters of correspondence.

Rockefeller Center-funded interns reflect on their experiences as part of our Notes from the Field series. The Rockefeller Center helps students find, fund, and prepare for a leave-term internship experience in public policy research, public policy analysis, issue evaluation, or activities which help shape and determine public policy.