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| Kevin Grout, Class of 2016 |
The
other mission of the Simon Center focused on programs for a variety of
audiences. This summer, the Center presented a series entitled “Lessons for
Conservatives: From Goldwater to the Tea Party.” This series included a lecture
by George Will on Goldwater’s Conservative Revolution, a panel on Reagan’s
legacy, and a lecture by former Speaker Newt Gingrich on the flip of the House
of Representatives in 1994. These public lectures were extremely well attended
and can be found on heritage.org. During these events, I worked registration
and held the microphones for questions. Afterwards, I was responsible for
creating and maintaining a database of attendees and creating special
invitations to invite them to future events. The Simon Center also hosted an
event every Friday for junior Hill staffers called the Heritage Congressional
Fellows Program. Each week, a Heritage expert or conservative thinker would
teach the group about First Principles and Heritage policy. These events gave
me an opportunity to learn event coordinating and also hear informative policy
briefings from experts.
The
other component of a Heritage Internship is a program devised to develop
conservative ideologies and prepare the interns for our careers. My department
organized a lecture on First Principles for the intern class each week. These
talks began with the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and
American foreign policy. These programs provided us with numerous materials for
conservative research and ideological development. Additionally, each week, we
heard a policy briefing from a Heritage Expert on topics like labor economics, traditional
marriage, and environmental policy. These briefings came from leaders in their
fields like Ryan Anderson and Secretary Elaine Chao. These two programs helped
me clarify my beliefs and defend my principles for my future.
In
addition to the wonderful work experiences, I experienced the amazing city of
Washington D.C. Together with the other interns, we toured the city, had unique
opportunities like a Pentagon tour, and met influential people like Chairman
Darrel Issa and Senator Jim DeMint. I formed professional and personal
connections to grow my network and learned professional skills that are sure to
help my upcoming job search.
My
experience at The Heritage Foundation was incredible. I am extremely honored to
have completed this internship program, and I have formed connections that will
help me continue to grow personally, intellectually, and in my career. Because
of my mentorships and connections at Heritage, I have decided to move to
Washington after graduation for a job on Capitol Hill in a Congressional
Office. My goal is to eventually become a Legislative Director or Chief of Staff
for a Member. Along the way, I would like to attend law school, but after
speaking with many successful conservatives, I have decided to put off accruing
that debt for some time. I am grateful to everyone who
helped me get into the internship program, and I plan to put the skills that I
developed to positive use in the future.
Kevin Grout is a junior McConnell Scholar studying political science and history. He is from Florence, Ky.