Two Ford School students win 2015 Udall Foundation Native American Congressional Internships
 |
The Udall Foundation recently announced that 12 students from 11 tribes and 10 universities have been selected as 2015 Native American Congressional Interns. They were selected by an independent review committee on the basis of academic achievement and a demonstrated commitment to careers in tribal public policy.
The 12 Udall Interns will complete an intensive, 10-week internship in the summer of 2015. Special enrichment activities will provide opportunities to meet with key decision makers. From 1996 through 2015, 233 American Indian and Alaska Native students from 112 tribes will have participated in the program.
The Ford School is proud to announce that two of the 12 interns are from the Gerald Ford School of Public Policy:
Michon Johnson, a member of the Cheesh-Na Tribe, who will intern in the office of U.S. Senator John McCain. Michon Johnson is Ahtna Athabascan and grew up in Anchorage, AK. She graduated with her bachelor's in social work from the University of Anchorage, Alaska, in 2011. Michon worked for an Alaska Native government contracting agency providing services to the National Aeronautics Space Administration. Currently, Michon is a graduate student at the Ford School, working on a dual-degree in public policy and social work. She intends to work for a Native organization doing advocacy, legislative, and social work. Her long-term goal is to open a non-profit organization that provides scholarships and mentoring opportunities for indigenous students.
 |
Jeremiah Thompson, a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, who will intern with the White House Initiative for American Indian and Alaska Native Education. Jeremiah Thompson is a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians based in Harbor Springs, MI. He is originally from Tallahassee, Florida, and is a dual-degree graduate student at the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education and the Ford School of Public Policy. Jeremiah has previously worked for both Little Traverse and the Seneca Nation of Indians in postsecondary-access positions. He is interested in federal education policy and hopes to work in this capacity to support Native students pursuing higher education.
Learn more about the Congressional Internship Program and meet the 2015 Udall Interns.
The Native American Congressional Internship Program provides American Indian and Alaska Native students with the opportunity to gain practical experience with the federal legislative process in order to understand first-hand the government-to-government relationship between Tribes and the federal government. The internship is funded by the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy.