Education/training
Queen's Park interns learn how to get things doneAs an intern at Queen's Park this past year, Jacqueline Locke met the who's who of Ontario politics, including a handful of former premiers, along with the movers and shakers of the business community. She witnessed first-hand legislative processes in Ottawa, Quebec City, Alabama, Tennessee and England. LINDA WHITE |
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 [ 2006-07-26 ] |
Intern
"I've always been interested in politics and current events," Locke says. The 23-year-old graduated from the University of Western Ontario in London last year, where she studied political economy, social movements, political parties and development, particularly in Latin American regions.
"I thought about completing my Master's or going to law school, but I knew this internship would provide a completely different experience I just couldn't get at school," Locke says. She landed one of just eight internships available each year to recent university graduates.
The program runs from September through June. Interns spend half their time with a member of the government and the other half with a member of the opposition. Their responsibilities can include writing speeches, preparing MPPs for question period and committee work, researching policy issues, assisting with constituency work and attending meetings with or on behalf of the MPP.
Locke began her internship with Conservative MPP Ted Arnott (Waterloo-Wellington). In February, she began working with Liberal MPP Jean-Marc Lalonde (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell), Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Economic Development and Trade.
She helped Lalonde research a private member's bill on the creation of an organ donor registry, which passed second reading. "It was an interesting file to work on," Locke says. "As an intern, you really get to be part of staff. It's great how the different offices open their doors for us."
On visits to legislatures south of the border, Locke met state governors, secretaries of state and Supreme Court justices. On her trip to England in July, she was scheduled to visit the Canadian Embassy and British Foreign Office. She expects to travel before possibly returning to school.
Interns receive a stipend of $19,000 plus $1,000 on submission of a research paper on some aspect of the legislative process. They also receive financial assistance to help defray the costs of trips to other legislatures.
"The most important thing interns get from the program, apart from working, is the opportunity to meet all sorts of important people," says program director Henry Jacek, a political science professor at McMaster University in Hamilton.
"This year, our interns met former premiers Bill Davis, Mike Harris and Bob Rae, along with our current premier, Dalton McGuinty. They met important journalists like Peter Mansbridge and reporters from major Toronto newspapers, especially those which cover Queen's Park. They met business leaders, bank executives and important union leaders and association leaders."
In addition to having an interest in politics and the parliamentary process, good candidates are multi-taskers who are able to handle stress. "They have to have a good ethical sense, have discretion and be professional," Jacek says. "Even if they have political tendencies, they have to suppress them. They must be willing to work long hours and must help run the program and do their own research project. We look for hard-working people."
The internship program has opened doors for many graduates. "Our interns are very accomplished. Many would say this program is the turning point in their lives ... They became jet propelled because of their experience," Jacek says. "They know how to get things done."
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QUICK FACTS
The Ontario Legislature Internship Programme was established in 1975 and is administered by the Canadian Political Science Association, which established the Parliamentary Internship Programme for the House of Commons of Canada in 1969.
The program is designed to provide backbench Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) with highly qualified assistants, while giving interns experience in the day-to-day work of the Legislature. Graduates of the program have gone on to work in government, business, journalism, law and academia.
Visit www.olip.ontla.on.ca for more information, including applications, which are due in February.
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