We had the opportunity of interviewing Luke Drago, a student at Oxford University, about: Internships
In high school, Luke was the Public Forum Debate captain, an octofinalist at the 2019 NCFL National Debate Tournament, a three-time national qualifier in the National History Day documentary competition (and three-time finalist in the local and state National History Day documentary competition), a strategy intern for the McCool for Matthews campaign, the co-founder of his school's social justice club. Luke also scored a 32 on his ACT and has over 2000 hours volunteered at his local church.
Key points Luke shares:
I did a lot as a political intern... Because it was a local election, I was able to work directly with the campaign manager and the candidate. I took notes at debates, created debate prep, worked on press releases, crafted some of our messaging, and spoke directly with voters.
Q: As a political intern for the McCool for Matthews campaign, what did you do?
A: I did a lot as a political intern. That campaign was a really unique experience because our candidate was just 21 years old. Because it was a local election, I was able to work directly with the campaign manager and the candidate. I took notes at debates, created debate prep, worked on press releases, crafted some of our messaging, and spoke directly with voters. In the 2021 election cycle, I’ll be serving the re-election campaign as our political director.
Q: How much time did you devote to it each week?
A: I devoted around 15 hours a week to the campaign in 2019.
Q: How did you find this opportunity and what has it taught you?
A: I found this opportunity through a friend who I had worked with previously. He was serving as the campaign manager, and I asked if I could come on in any role. He created a role for me, and I worked hard in it. I learned a lot from this experience. Oftentimes, politics exists as a far-away abstraction of ideas and talking heads. Here, I learned how politics could affect people at every level. Local governments do a lot, and yet so few people know who their mayor is or who their council members are. I’m thankful for the opportunity to learn how local government works and to learn how to run a successful campaign.
Connect with Luke on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/in/luke-drago-89a5a7b0.