Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute
Protection of Children
Washington, DC
The past few weeks have been quite amazing. When I
applied to work with CCAI I had no idea of the magnitude of what I would be
doing and the impact it would have on me. They say that law school changes the
way one thinks forever (and it is true); I have become more analytical and
question everything. Working with CCAI has also changed the way I think. Not
only do I analyze the laws and the way they are made, I have begun to analyze
the way I respond to daily life compared to the way a child in foster care
would. I have gotten to meet and work with the most amazing 15 youth we call
Foster Youth Interns. They are a group of 15 college students who grew up in
the foster care system for many different reasons but by no fault of their own.
Our foster youth interns are working with congress members and CCAI to change legislation
for their peers in the foster care system and all those who will come after
them. Tuesday, we attended a Senate Finance Committee roundtable hosted by the
Congressional Caucus for Foster Youth. Our youth and others shared their
stories about how a piece of legislation that was written about 15 years ago
has affected their lives. The amazing part is that the people who wrote the
legislation were present and were surprised by what it had become - totally
different!
I have gotten to see how legislation moves through
various parties: from the time those in the field recognize it as a problem to
the time it is enacted into legislation. I am constantly on conference calls
with working professionals, stakeholder agencies, congressional staff, and
citizens who have been directly impacted by bad or outdated laws. Creating laws
is all about relationships...finding the right people who can strategize in an
effective manner to influence the right people. I am constantly attending
meetings and networking with all kinds of people. I am so thankful for the
chance to learn all that I am learning. I am still not sure if policy is what I
want to get into, but I am learning so much that it will prepare me for
anything I hope to do later on. I'm so thankful for this opportunity!
- Heather Pate, 6/17/12
No comments:
Post a Comment