The fourth week of my internship looked a little different than what I had been used to thus far. On Tuesday, I was invited to join our regional manager at a meeting for the Camanche-Dewitt Coalition. Among the many topics that were discussed, the committee emphasized the alarming presence of illicit drug and alcohol use in local school districts. The members of this committee are not the only ones concerned about this issue. In fact, many community members and even students are trying to spread awareness to prevent the rise of underage drinking and drug use. During the meeting, the committee was shown a video that was completely organized and filmed by fifth and sixth grade students. The film raised awareness for underage drinking and provided researched-based facts about things such as where most underage users get alcohol and other substances.
As the meeting progressed, the conversation expanded into brainstorming ideas for how to get middle and highschool aged students involved and passionate about raising awareness for these types of issues. This was interesting for me, as I had participated in various groups in highschool related to similar subjects. With this background, I was able to share various ideas and events that I thought were successful when I was in highschool. As a recent graduate, I think I brought a valuable perspective to the table. As a younger individual, I believe that I have a decent understanding of what draws in or pushes away young adults. Some organizations that I think do a wonderful job of raising awareness for issues and empowering younger audiences are the Gray Matters Foundation, Speak Out, and Delivered. Clearly, the goal is that underage drinking and drug use would stop altogether. However, I think there is immense value in attempting to understand why students and younger individuals use these substances in the first place. With this in mind, I believe that these organizations effectively explain and address the mental health issues that many students struggle with.
From personal experience, I understand that it can be extremely difficult to get students involved in such activities. Perhaps this could be due to the fact that students believe that their emotions are invalid or they are concerned about what their friends will think or say about them. This is exactly why raising awareness is so vital. Once a student understands that they are not the only ones struggling with something, they are more likely to feel comfortable talking about what they are going through. My friend, Bella McDaniel recognized this and felt like a space was needed to raise awareness for athletes in particular. Consequently, she founded Delivered, a 501(c)3 organization “dedicated to helping others find their purpose.”
In addition to sharing these organizations and groups, I also expressed how I think students are drawn to demonstrations. Lets face it, everyone loves an entertaining demonstration. A few ideas that I shared were the Drunk Buster goggles (which can simulate being under influence of different drugs and alcohol) and the police dog/arm sleeve.
Throughout the week, I have worked on cleaning out file cabinets in the office. After following the proper procedures, I ended up with six (almost) full archive boxes. Most of the files and paperwork in these boxes are composed of individual casework dating back to 2020. Since constituent casework contains private and personal information, it cannot simply be thrown away. Instead, this information is archived, allowing for it to be accessed in the future if necessary. Considering that these files cover the span of roughly five years of casework, cleaning them out of the office will provide a decent amount of space for other paperwork or items. In addition to archiving, I also worked on identifying and organizing all of the surplus electronics that we had in the office but went unused (mostly due to being outdated). As I sorted through the electronics, I documented the items and their model numbers to eventually create a final inventory list.
On Friday, I took the opportunity to take a quick day trip to explore Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. I felt right at home, as these two locations are where I spend most of my time while at college! While in the city, I was able to visit the federal courthouse. Everytime that I visit this courthouse, I am blown away by how pretty the building is! While here, I was able to visit Senator Grassley’s Cedar Rapids’ office and the wonderful people who work there.
Photo of the Cedar Rapids Federal Courthouse
After attending various community events throughout the past couple of weeks, I have truly learned the importance of constituent engagement. Even though Senator Grassley is not able to make it to all of these meetings around the state of Iowa, having staff like myself and my supervisor or the regional manager attend on behalf of him, is a way for the Senator to express his sincere care for his constituents, as well as to learn of important updates and general information. One thing that has stood out to me over the first half of my internship, is how much Senator Grassley cares about hearing from his constituents. Not only does Senator Grassley value getting a response out to every constituent inquiry, but he is also currently on his state-wide county tour. This is the forty-fifth year that Senator Grassley is travelling to all ninety-nine counties in the state to hear directly from the people of Iowa.