APAICS | Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies

Collaboration through Common Histories

by Sondra Morishima, 2010 APAICS Intern

It is a well-known fact that summertime in DC is intern season.  Having been here for about a month, I’ve had the opportunity to meet many interns through mixers, networking events, and other activities throughout the city. 

It’s often difficult to make lasting connections, but through tri-caucus events I’ve had the chance to keep up the relationships with people I’ve met throughout the summer.  At tri-caucus events, APAICS interns meet and work with interns from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF). Our first event was a networking event in which we first met the other interns.  APAICS, with only 14 interns, was the smallest group whereas both CHCI and CBCF boasted over 30 interns each. 

The most recent tri-caucus event that we attended was the Tri-Caucus Summit.  This event focused on accessibility of education for communities of color as well as our own shared histories.  The event began with a lecture on American history, with a focus on landmark events for people of color that are often overlooked or left out in the dominant discourse taught in schools.  Afterwards, we were split into groups in order to collaborate with interns from the other organizations to come up with a political solution – whether through diverse elected officials, school board budget plans, school curriculum, or any other possible method – to the complex, fictional case study presented.  In doing so, each group pooled together the various skills that each intern brought to the table and through coalition building we worked together to find the best solutions.  In the end, two groups tied for first place. 

I really enjoyed working with the other interns in order to come to a consensus on how to deal with the highly intricate situation we were faced with.  With such a variety of backgrounds, I really had to consider the stakeholders and how to best accommodate everyone.  Although it was a fictional case, everyone got into character and tried passionately to create changes and encourage progress in the educational and political systems. 

However, the most rewarding aspect in my opinion was the chance to really get to know more people of distinct backgrounds, people who soon become familiar faces and partners working towards a common goal.  DC and the amount of interns during the summertime can often be overwhelming but, through tri-caucus events such as this past week’s summit, the city, the politics, and the people here become easier to navigate.

Sondra Morishima is a 2010 APAICS Summer Intern placed as a Senate Doorkeeper with the Senate Sergeant at Arms.  A rising senior, she currently studies Political Science and Asian American Studies at New York University.