As an intern, Ricky became a part of the White House team, with daily assignments including conducting research, managing incoming inquiries, attending meetings, writing memos, and staffing events.
Interns work in one of several White House departments, including the Domestic Policy Council, the National Economic Council, the Office of Cabinet Affairs, the Office of Communications, the Office of Digital Strategy, the Office of the First Lady, the Office of the Vice President, the Office of the White House Counsel, among others.
We were excited to get the following insight from Ricky following his experience:
What drew you to the White House internship program?
Just the thought of being able to say that I not only
served in the Obama Administration, but more importantly my country and its
people during such a critical time in American history was enough to draw me to
the White House Internship Program. The application process was quite simple,
actually: I went to the White House's website and filled out the application
form!
What did you hope to get out of the experience?
There isn't much time left before the next administration
takes the reins, but there remains so much left to be done to help the American
public. I want to continue to grow as a human being and as a public servant,
and to make lifelong connections with some good people while I am here. Most
importantly, I want to continue to develop the public service bug within me, as
I know that my role within my community back home will change forever because
of this experience.
What and where were your key assignments?
Since I started my internship in the Office of Public
Engagement, I've worked on various projects, like events during Black History
Month, outreach to the Asian American Pacific Islanders community, and even
Veterans issues from time to time. I help wherever I am needed because it feels
good to be able to help the machine run well. My policy is that I am here to
help in any way that I can, and it gives me great joy to be able to do that
while working with everyone here.
What was your first day like? What is a typical day like?
In many ways, my first day was very much of a blur. Our
second day was the State of the Union, so the first day was a whirlwind of
activity throughout the White House. With everyone getting ready for the
speech, time just flew by. It was a numbing feeling, realizing where I was after
all of the waiting and work leading up to this.
A typical day involved arriving at the office in the
morning and checking in with a few staffers on the day's events. I would print out my
schedule, attach it to my clipboard, and review what needs to be done for the
day. On occasion, there was an event somewhere on the premises that interns
helped to manage. Due to the changing nature of events and the likelihood of
unexpected developments, roles never turned out to be exactly what they were on
paper. That's the exciting part of those events. Afterwards, it was mostly
checking in with staffers and making sure projects that I was assigned were done
by deadline.
What was the high point of the internship?
That's an easy one. The whole internship was an
emotional high for me. It's where I've always wanted to be since I was a
six-year old watching President Bill Clinton debate Senator Bob Dole on
television during the 1996 election season, so you could imagine how
glazed-over my eyes must have been approaching the iconic building for the
first time. President Barack Obama is the only public figure I have ever been
star-struck by.
Do you want to have a career in public service or as an
elected official? If not, what are your career aspirations?
Absolutely. A career in public service as an elected
official has always been something I've been drawn to do. It is something I
often dream about. My home state of Florida needs someone that speaks on behalf
of a new generation. I attribute this desire to the experiences I've gained
here as well as my time working with Florida State Representative Bobby Powell
during (and after) my undergraduate years. I look forward to the opportunity to
represent my family, neighborhood, community, city, county, state, and country
in elected office.
It would be an honor to be an active part of the
governing process someday; but first, I need to finish my legal education. I
plan on returning to St. Thomas University in fall 2016 to continue my studies
and to finish my J.D./M.B.A. in Sports Administration. I look forward to one
day becoming either a sports agent or a league executive in the National
Basketball Association. The idea of being a professional franchise's general
counsel excites me, as it would bring together two of my loves (the law and
sports). Entertainment and Sports Law essentially creates an umbrella of
varying practices, such as business law, immigration law, corporate law, some
tax law, and various other concentrations I have a strong interest in.
But I need to pass the Florida Bar first. Once I do that,
I will be able to fulfill my desire to serve as an advocate for those that
cannot speak for themselves in the legal system. This is also why I hope to
represent my community's voice in elected office in the years to come. It's my
hope that my work here in Washington, D.C. makes my family, my community, and
my school proud.
How has your time at St. Thomas Law prepared you for this
experience?
In addition to the unconditional love and support of my
mother, father, siblings, and extended family, this transition to Washington
D.C. wouldn't have been possible without the help, wisdom, and guidance of some
good people down there along the way - Deans Alfredo Garcia, Cecile Dykas, and
John Hernandez, Andres Marrero, Jiovanna Bryant, Delores Hollis-Hall, and Rudy
Jacir, just to name a few. There is no doubt that my education and overall
experiences at St. Thomas University have helped me out big time while I was at the White House. They, along with many others throughout this experience, have truly
been invaluable.
Being a student at St. Thomas Law has helped me become a
much more analytical and objective thinker in all aspects of my life, making
certain tasks here at work a lot easier than they otherwise would have been. As
someone that has taken courses taught by world-class professors such as
Jennifer Martin, John and June-Mary Makdisi, Tamara Lawson, Nadia Soree, and
Barbara Singer, I feel like I can take on the world. I am thankful to have had
these professors thus far.
Being on the executive board of multiple on-campus
organizations since my first year (such as the Student Bar Association,
Entertainment and Sports Law Society, Jewish Law Students Association, and the
Phi Alpha Delta Legal Fraternity) made it possible for me to easily transfer
those acquired to skills to the various events and projects I faced as an intern at The White House.
The St. Thomas Law community is proud of the drive and determination displayed by Ricky in securing this opportunity.
