This summer, four students affiliated with the Center for Citizenship & Constitutional Government interned in public policy roles at think tanks and public interest law firms. Constitutional Studies minors Zachari Taylor ‘27 and Kerry Jiang ‘28 and Notre Dame Law School students Stephanie Luiz JD ‘28 and Chloe Garner JD ‘28 all received grants from the CCCG to make their internships possible.
Taylor worked at Novel Strategies, a public affairs firm in Washington, D.C. “I wanted to round out my policy experience,” he said, “by seeing how the private sector intersects with our government, and was fortunate enough to have a Notre Dame graduate put me in touch with the people at Novel Strategies.”
In his role, Taylor worked on legislative affairs, attending Congressional hearings, drafting policy briefs, and monitoring the progress of various bills. “As an intern, the team at Novel gave me responsibilities that made my work feel valued and important. I now have a deeper understanding of how our government operates and is influenced by outside actors, and the work that goes into effective outreach and policy messaging.”
Jiang also worked in Washington, D.C. as an intern for the Religious Freedom Institute. At the Institute, Jiang principally worked on a report covering religious persecution under ISIS in Iraq. “I learned about the suffering these communities endured and explored how the United States can help protect them through law and public policy,” he said.
Throughout the summer, Jiang attended the Institute’s Statesman and Religious Freedom Seminar, studied religious freedom laws, and participated in weekly sessions exploring the connection between religious liberty and human dignity. Jiang finished the internship with a deeper understanding of the challenges for religious liberty: “Although religious freedom appears to be legally protected, growing secularism and hostility toward religion compel many people to hide their faith.” Consequently, he came away from this experience with a stronger grasp of its importance. “These concepts are especially relevant to me as a faithful Catholic because Dignitatis Humanae emphasizes that religious freedom is a fundamental right rooted in human dignity and that individuals should be free to seek religious truth.”
Luiz also worked on religious liberty issues in two different roles this summer, interning remotely for Napa Legal Institute in Boston, MA, and serving as a research assistant for Paul J. Schierl Professor of Law Rick Garnett at the Notre Dame Law School.
At Napa Legal, Luiz assisted with legal research and projects covering the separation of church and state, especially as it relates to religious charities and other organizations. “The experience allowed me to strengthen my legal research and writing skills while contributing to work that addresses important and developing religious-liberty issues.”
Luiz worked on similar projects for Professor Garnett, whose Freedom of Religion class she recently took. “I greatly enjoyed the class and hoped to serve as his research assistant so that I could help produce meaningful scholarly work in an area of law that I find especially important.”
In retrospect, Luiz looks forward to applying her academic work to help religious communities practice their faith. “I have appreciated the opportunity to see how careful legal scholarship can inform both academic discussion and the practical work of organizations serving religious communities.”
Garner worked in Cincinnati, OH at the Ohio Justice and Policy Center’s Human Rights in Prison project. “This summer, I examined hundreds of pages of medical records, familiarized myself with way too many cases of human rights violations in prison, and discovered the never-ending demand for the type of work OJPC is committed to.”
Garner explained how the internship shaped her perspectives on criminal justice. “This experience has taught me about the value each person has…. and the importance of recognizing the humanity of our clients, especially in the language we use.”
Returning to Notre Dame for the fall, Taylor, Jiang, Luiz, and Garner look forward to building on their internships and continuing to explore careers in public service.