Women's Studies Grad Student Wins Congressional Fellowship

Gina M. D'Andrea, First Year Women's Studies Teaching Assistant and Student

Second year graduate student Dana Lynn McGrath has won a prestigious Congressional Fellowship through the Women's Research and Education Institute (WREI).  After hearing about WREI's fellowship program both through the Women's Studies Program and  through the Public Policy Student Association, McGrath, who is getting her MA in Public Policy with a concentration in Women's Studies, decided to apply.  McGrath describes her thoughts before applying: "I wanted to get exposed to what it might be like to work as an LA, a legislative aide.  It would put me in that position so I could find out if I really want to continue to work in government.  And this is the kind of job that would help me even if I decide to go back to non-profit work."   After applying in June, McGrath found out in August that she had been accepted.

Beginning in January McGrath will go on interviews with the offices she has requested: the offices of Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), Sen. Jeff Bingham (D-NM), Rep. Hilda Solis (D-CA), Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), and Rep. Lloyd Dogget (D-TX), as well as the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, the House Education and the Workforce Committee.  As a legislative aide her duties will include at least 30 hours a week in one of the above offices, from January to August 2003.  She will be assigned certain issue areas that she will be expected to become expert on.  Additionally, McGrath will assemble with the other WREI fellows of 2003 each week for seminars conducted by WREI staff.

When asked if she is excited about this opportunity, McGrath replied, "I don't know.  I'm not thinking about really, because I'm a little bit nervous, and I'm really busy."  McGrath is in her third semester as a graduate student in the Women's Studies Program, and is thus in the throes of finals.  She will continue to take one class in the spring semester and two classes in the summer.  McGrath is also a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA), a position she had to give up in order to take the WREI Fellowship.  McGrath also lost the free tuition that the GTA position gives students.  While the stipend from WREI that she will receive is comparable to the money connected to the GTA position, WREI can only offer fellows $750 per semester for tuition, which will not completely cover one credit at GW.  In addition to her final responsibilities as a GTA and end of semester responsibilities as a student, McGrath's time is taken up with searching for money to pay her tuition for the final nine credits of graduate work she has ahead of her.  But McGrath added that she will "start mentally preparing for [the fellowship] over Christmas break.  They give you a lot of reading materials so you're prepared when you start the position, and I'll probably get more excited then, when I have a moment to breathe."