by Allison Polk

Students who apply to Gallaudet who have a strong interest in the legislative process could also be signing up for an education in national politics. That proved true for senior Zach Ennis, who recently completed a four-month internship in a congressional office on Washington D.C.’s Capitol Hill.

Zach, from Frederick, Md., has long held advocacy and politics as interests close to his heart. While still in high school, he volunteered on political campaigns ranging from the municipal to congressional. As a Gallaudet student, he was elected Student Body Government president. Zach’s is latest internship in the office of U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder (R-Kan.) proved the next step in his pursuit of a career in politics and advocacy.

The internship included “understanding the legislative process and exactly what is required to make diplomacy happen. It helps me understand how we can make deaf issues important without seeming overbearing,” said Zach.

“Another nice thing was being able to develop a network of people for counsel and advice,” added Zach, who majors in government with minors in deaf studies and philosophy. The internship opportunity arose thanks to collaborative efforts between Gallaudet’s Career Center and the Office of the President, who launched the Capitol Hill Internship Program (CHIP) two years ago. Zach credits Gallaudet Interim Assistant Vice President for Administration and Program Development Fred Weiner with alerting him to the internship opportunity listing with the Career Center.

CHIP is an initiative to connect more students with internships in Congress, and past alumni have served in offices for U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham-Clinton when she was a senator for New York and on a committee for the office of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.). The program is designed to help interested students see the American political system in action just a few blocks from the Gallaudet campus by working in a senator or congressional representative’s office on federal, state, and local issues.

Zach’s internship duties were similar to many other interns on Capitol Hill, including managing the correspondence between the office and the congressman’s constituents, survey and database research, and writing reports on hearings he attended. However, every once in a while, unique tasks arose for Zach. For example, when Rep. Yoder expressed a desire to connect more directly with the deaf community in his district in Kansas, Zach was enlisted to help script, stage, and eventually appear in a public service announcement-style video seated next to the congressman.

In the video message, Rep. Yoder introduces himself using American Sign Language, a characteristic Zach notes not only affirms the bilingual values he supports at Gallaudet, but speaks volumes to deaf Kansas voters. “I wanted to make sure ASL was validated in the video, and I told Rep. Yoder it was a must if he wanted to connect with the deaf community. He agreed,” said Zach. It quickly became Rep. Yoder’s most-watched video.

Rep. Yoder’s agreement is no surprise, as he has an interest in the deaf community. He sits on Gallaudet’s Board of Trustees, and his district includes both the Kansas School for the deaf and the Olathe Deaf Cultural Center.

Zach finished out his internship appreciating a new insight into politics and the daily work of politicians and congressional staff members. “The access to new knowledge was much appreciated,” said Zach. “It’s important for any college student to remember that the world out there is much wider and bigger and complicated than we think. The best way to get a handle on it is to get out there – think, engage, and be exposed to it. That’s the kind of education you can’t get from any teacher anywhere.”