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Alexis Ruiz
Franklin College & SPIA: May 2010
First year law student at Tulane Law School
During the fall of 2008, I was able to take advantage of the unique privilege to participate in UGA’s Washington Semester Program. Through this program I interned in the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund’s (MALDEF) Washington, D.C. office while taking a full-time course load. It was through this experience that I learned of the plethora of opportunities available in our nation’s capital.
I went back to DC after graduation to participate in the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s Public Policy Fellowship, a program that provides a leadership building curriculum, while fellows work in different organizations to gain more policy experience. I worked at the Service Employees International Union, then the Office of Presidential Correspondence at the White House. Both were challenging, growing experiences that helped me decide my next big step. In 2012, I worked as a Field Organizer for Organizing for America- FL, and after we re-elected President Obama I received a phone call from D.C. asking if I would go work on his Presidential Inaugural Committee. This was certainly an opportunity I could not pass up, so I moved back to D.C., and after inauguration I began working with the United Auto Workers as their legislative staffer on immigration.
I sincerely appreciate the guidance I received at UGA, specifically the UGA Career Center which better prepared me to make those tough career decisions. Never hesitate to drop into the Career Center offices! You will be grateful you did.