By Menachem Wecker
Asked how much she enjoyed spending a semester in Washington, Sirisha Chandraraju apologizes in advance for being too giddy.
“I don’t think I can say enough about how much I loved GW and D.C. as a campus and a city,” she says. “I loved the Metro. I loved the people walking around. I loved the cherry blossoms. And when I wasn’t freezing outside, I even loved the snow.”
Ms. Chandraraju, who holds a B.A. in political science from the University of Southern California, attended the Semester in Washington Politics program at GW from January to May 2009, her senior year.
The program, which is offered during the fall, spring and summer semesters, brings students from other universities to campus to study, network and intern in Washington.
“It was an opportunity like no other,” she says. “You can be interested in politics and involved in the political spectrum, but Washington is a whole other world.”
Ms. Chandraraju was studying in Madrid in fall 2008 when she applied for the program. Emily Crerand, a master’s candidate in political management at GW and staff member at Semester in Washington Politics program, helped Ms. Chandraraju apply for and land an internship at the Washington office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“I loved interning on the Hill, and for the speaker at that!” she says. “It gave me the opportunity to be involved in many different things, and since I was there during the inauguration and the first few months of the Obama administration, it was something else to witness that transfer.”
Internship perks included the “awe-inspiring” view from the speaker’s balcony, Ms. Chandraraju said.
Living in Washington also helped her dispel rumors she had heard about D.C. being cut throat. “I was surprised at how many people were personable, approachable and helpful as I tried to learn to navigate that world,” she says.
According to Gregory Lebel, director of the Semester in Washington Politics program and assistant professor of political management, there have been about 500 alumni of the program since it was created in 1995. GW benefits from bringing students like Ms. Chandraraju to campus in three ways, he says.
The program raises the university’s profile across the country, and some of the alumni of the program so enjoy their experiences on campus that they apply to GW for graduate school. The program also brings more diversity to campus.
“Joint programs with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute and our own Native American Political Leadership Program all help us to achieve this important university-wide goal of increased diversity,” Mr. Lebel says.
One of the most unique aspects of Semester in Washington Politics is its full scholarship program in political leadership for Native American, Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native undergraduates. The program, sponsored by the AT&T Foundation, addresses all aspects of the political process from campaigning, message development and media production to fundraising, direct mail and voter targeting.
“I have the opportunity to teach students from across the country and from many different backgrounds with the remarkable resources of GW and the most important city in the world as my classroom,” says Mr. Lebel. “You can’t beat that.”