For the second summer in a row, a Harding University student will intern with The Heritage Foundation, a conservative public policy research institute in Washington, D.C.
The Heritage Foundation Internship Program, a paid internship, invites 50 students each fall and spring to work part time and 70 students each summer to work full time researching issues of domestic and foreign policy.
For the internship, senior public administration major Ashley Shelton, who said she desires to become a policy analyst, will work in The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis from June 6 till mid-August. Having applied to the program in November and interviewed by phone on Feb. 22, she was offered a position with the foundation on Feb. 24.
Shelton said she looks forward to working for The Heritage Foundation because it is a prestigious organization that is morally sound and devoted to the founding principles of America and also because of the opportunities it will present her.
“I am excited about seeing how it all works, seeing how our government works,” Shelton said. “I sit in the classroom all the time and learn about [our goverment] at the state and local and federal levels, but I am going to be in it. I’m going to be all up in it, seeing how policy is made and the end result and why it’s good and why it’s bad.”
Junior Erin Grant interned with The Heritage Foundation last summer, working in the Center for International Trade and Economics doing research for and editing “The Index of Economic Freedom,” which ranks nations based on how economically free they are.
Grant, who has had five or six internships, said The Heritage Foundation Internship Program is the best internship she has seen. In addition to her research and editing, she and her fellow interns had the opportunity to attend seminars, tour historical sites, and hear and meet with prominent conservatives. Through the internship Grant met news commentator Ann Coulter, political commentator Ben Shapiro and the foundation’s Vice President for Domestic and Economic Policy David Addington, who was Chief of Staff to Vice President Dick Cheney; and work individually with a mentor from Heritage.
Shelton said she does not yet know what activities her internship will include, but seminars, guest speakers and field trips are regular features of the program.
Assistant Professor of History and Social Sciences Lori Klein, who recommended Shelton for the Heritage program, said this internship will play to Shelton’s strengths because she has a knack for data analysis.
“I think she’s really kind of interested in ‘What do the numbers say about this choice? Can we look at this choice in a rational manner and figure out if there is a better option?'” Klein said.
Assistant Provost and Assistant Professor of History Cheri Yecke, who also recommended Shelton for the internship, said Shelton is an excellent student and that The Heritage Foundation is a good place for her to intern because she will be exposed to prominent political people and to the political process. Yecke also said she hopes Harding students will continue to participate in the internship.
“I think that this is the start of a good trend for Harding students,” Yecke said. “I’d like to make it a tradition and to challenge our student body so that every year we have at least one person involved with The Heritage Foundation.”
