City of Coral Springs

Local Policy Intern

May - August 2019 • Coral Springs, FL

What I liked

I interned under Commissioner Joshua Simmons and learning from him was an awesome experience. Attending commission meetings, writing policy memos on some of his initiatives, and tagging along on site visits (to water plants and award ceremonies) gave me a really good idea of what policy and politics on the local level are like. I really appreciated sitting in on office hours and hearing from concerned residents, as I believe face-to-face connection with constituents is important, in order to make policy thrive and be what the people want it to be. I truly enjoyed getting a better understanding of the relationship between commissioners and city staff, and how all the pieces of the puzzle come together.

What I wish was different

If anything, I wish the experience was even more hands-on. Commissioners in Coral Springs work under part-time status, so their primary jobs often come first. Working with city staff to understand their work would have given me an additional helpful perspective. However, even given the level of involvement I had, the experience was great.

Advice

If you want to get involved in any kind of public service, I can't recommend enough the idea of interning at the local level. So much of our relationship with government is through our municipal officials and staff and you really learn a lot about how a city you grew up in and took for granted operates on a day-to-day basis.

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