In June the League welcomed two summer interns Anna Rocha and Isla Cope. In contrast to the college interns that served last summer, they are both going into their senior year of high school with Isla at Berkeley High School and Anna at John Swett High School in Crockett. 

Anna said she learned about the internship program from a family friend and was so enthused that she took initiative to contact the League through the website. She was subsequently interviewed by League leaders when she explained that she was most interested in joining the Criminal Justice (CJ) Team. Anna is focused on criminal justice and socio-economic justice issues. In the last few months Anna has attended several Albany commission meetings, where she has been a League Observer and written articles to keep members aware of what government-led discussions are taking place.  

“In the internship I’ve learned a ton about local government and the efforts to improve the policies of police departments.” Anna said, “I’ve contributed through observing meetings, reporting to the CJ team and writing articles to inform people of the work being done.”

She said it’s hard to pick what she’s enjoyed the most so far and that she’s learned great new skills and strengthened existing ones.

 “I’d say joining the meetings is my favorite part,” she said. “It’s refreshing to see communities get together and have meaningful dialogue about issues and how to improve for the better.”

Isla has been working with the Communications Team this summer. She has written six news articles, created social media posts for various platforms, and gained experience in graphic design over the past month and a half. She learned about the internship program through a friend who was formerly an intern herself. 

 “I’ve learned a lot about creating content for an organization that I care about,” Isla said. The work she’s done has also built on research experience she gained from an internship last summer with a Berkeley-based organization focused on climate activism and equity. 

One of the projects she enjoyed the most was writing an article on the Healthcare Caucus at the LWVC convention. One of the things Isla said she learned was how historical inequities are exacerbated by our current for-profit healthcare system. It inspired her to learn more about single payer healthcare. 

“I feel really lucky to have found this internship with the League because it’s both something I’m really interested in and a great way to gain experience,” Isla said. 

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