6 years, 7 months ago Addi Ippensen
Interning for Darin LaHood in Washington an eye opening experience
My name is Addi Ippensen. I’m from Payson and am a student at the University of Illinois. Last summer (2016) I interned for STARadio in Quincy and was part of WTAD’s morning show, The Morning Meeting, with Quaid and Sean Secrease. This summer, I had the privilege of working as an intern for U.S. Congressman Darin LaHood in Washington D.C. It was a true honor to assist the Congressman in serving the 18th District of Illinois.
While working on Capitol Hill, I was given multiple amazing opportunities for hands on work and experiences on a daily basis. As a student studying broadcast journalism, political science, and public relations I am very interested in government communications, and I was fortunate enough to lend a helping hand as part of Congressman LaHood's communications team. I assisted in writing speeches that the Congressman would later give on the House of Representatives floor. In addition, I helped create and manage content on his social media accounts. I was also called upon to assist with legislation research, respond to constituent’s mail and phone calls, attend multiple hearings, committee markups and meetings, meet countless influential leaders- including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan-and help with any other tasks needed in the office.
One of my favorite parts of being a Congressional intern was giving tours of the US Capitol to constituents from the 18th District. Being able to administer a once in a lifetime tour to families from our district was a truly humbling experience for me.
A special thing about being a summer congressional intern is getting to experience D.C. in a "best of both worlds" fashion. During the weekdays, I would work in the office (which given that it was the Capitol is pretty cool to begin with). After work and on the weekends my friends and I could explore the city as if we were tourists instead of "temporary locals."
While my summer in D.C. was nothing short of amazing, I couldn't have done it without many of the skills I learned a year before as an intern for STARadio. After finishing my sophomore year at the U of I and shortly after switching my major to journalism, I knew I needed to get hands on experience in the field. I couldn't have picked a better place than STARadio to do just that. I was able to be a part of The Morning Meeting on WTAD, produce multiple packages for the show, conduct interviews with people, write and record commercials, and much more. The growth I experienced and skills I gained by being a STARadio intern exponentially helped in growing my confidence as a young professional.
I am truly fortunate to come from such a loving community that includes encouraging and influential people to learn from. I learned so much from both summers as an intern and I will take the experiences, lessons, and memories with me wherever I am led next.
