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Summer Interns Gain Experience for Future Seasons of Their Careers

Every summer, dozens of skilled tradespeople and public service aspirants from around the country brave the Washington, D.C., humidity to come and intern for the Architect of the Capitol (AOC). Once they arrive, they're dispatched across the Capitol campus to every jurisdiction, where they take on special projects and assignments with their unique AOC teams.
By Madeleine Lucchetti | December 5, 2023
        
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    Drawing.

Nathaniel Smitherman's illustration of the U.S. Capitol and surrounding area.

From carpentry and photography to clerking and gardening, the AOC internship program exposes students to a host of opportunities within the federal government. Such an experience often serves as a gateway for interns to discover full-time employment opportunities in the fields of their choice.

**We caught up with six 2023 interns and asked them how they spent their summers here.**

Coming to Campus

Washington, D.C., is a hot spot for summer internships in public and private organizations alike, and competition for spots is often fierce. Some applicants already had their eyes on the AOC internship program and waited many months for the USAJOBS.gov application to open. Others learned of an opening through mentors, shared connections or even family members. While each application process differed, all accepted interns were notified through email, and their future supervisors and managers helped solidify start dates and other logistics. The typical program length is 12 weeks.

Some interns came from as far as California and Florida. Many were enrolled in local (DMV) universities like University of Maryland and Towson University. One came from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Each held a varying degree of familiarity with D.C., and all had opportunities to explore the nation's capital further — even through AOC-specific programming like tours and workshops coordinated through the Employee Program Branch. Many interns named the Capitol Dome tour, the Library of Congress tour and Capitol campus scavenger hunts as highlights.

"I had a lot of favorite parts of the program," said Logan Martin, a Gardener Aide at the U.S. Botanic Garden (USBG), "but I think those activities really connected the interns, even though we weren't necessarily working together."

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    Portrait of a person.

Logan MartinMartin, a Cecil County, Maryland, native and University of Maryland student, spent his summer working outside, mostly in the USBG Regional Garden and raised plant beds. He fell in love with studying native plants during the pandemic.

"There wasn't much to do, so I spent a lot of time exploring the woods near my house," said Martin. "It ignited an interest in learning where and how local plant species originated."

Martin originally enrolled in college as a political science major before switching to studying horticulture. At the AOC, he was able to engage both passions: exploring the historic campus while working with numerous native plant species at the USBG. His capstone project discussed the emergence of a "volunteer plant" in one of the terrace's raised beds. Such plants spring up of their own accord, without being planted by a gardener.

Martin wasn't alone in his ability to translate his personal passions into professional outcomes: it's common for AOC interns to be placed in jurisdictions and offices that correspond with their own interests. And if those interests aren't listed in the job description, interns are often welcome to tailor their projects to include them.

Powering the Future

When Gwendolyn Zeckowski came to the Capitol Power Plant as an Engineering Aide, she was excited to help with chemical deliveries and air and water permitting — she'd studied similar processes during her undergraduate years at the University of Maryland as an environmental science major.

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    Portrait of a person.

Gwendolyn Zeckowski"My previous internships were more focused on wildlife preservation, working with birds, things like that," she said. "I mentioned that I was interested in sustainability, and my AOC supervisors were able to connect me with an Environmental Engineer at the Capitol Power Plant — so I ended up being able to do some sustainability research alongside my normal day-to-day projects."

Zeckowski enjoyed meeting interns across different jurisdictions and spending time on Capitol Hill. As a DMV native, she's no stranger to the D.C. area — and often can be found close by at DC Vault, a pole vault club that practices near Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium. This fall, she's applying the summer's learnings in a new capacity as she pursues her master's degree in geographic information systems.

A Special Partnership

A select group of interns came to the AOC together from Charleston, South Carolina, where they're enrolled at the American College of the Building Arts (ACBA). They are the first cohort of students to arrive at the AOC through a partnership between the school and the agency, which was initially established in 2020. ACBA describes itself as "the only college in America that fully integrates professional training in the building trades with a liberal arts core curriculum." Students can earn a degree in traditional skills like blacksmithing, architectural carpentry, and classical architecture and design.

JT Washington is one such ACBA student — and his journey to the AOC could be called serendipitous. Originally from California, Washington's senior year of high school was interrupted by the onset of the pandemic. He wasn't sure what to do after graduating, so he took what he calls the "typical" route and enrolled in a state university — but left after a year and a half.

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    Portrait of a person.

JT WashingtonHe learned about ACBA through his father, who'd seen the school mentioned in a PBS special. On a whim, Washington applied as an architectural carpentry student and was accepted. He and his father drove across the country to South Carolina, seeing the school for the first time on move-in day.

"I definitely felt like I could be biting off more than I could chew," Washington laughed. "When I got to ACBA, I'd never even held a two-by-four. But the risk paid off!"

He dove headfirst into his studies and has since worked in wood shops in New York and elsewhere. He heard about the partnership with the AOC through word of mouth and was brought on to assist the cabinetry shop in the Library Buildings and Grounds jurisdiction. Over the summer, he created custom cabinetry, shelving units and a vessel to contain ceremonial dishware. If Washington's approach to his career began a bit like throwing darts, his accomplishments at the AOC show he hit a bullseye.

Drawing Inspiration From the Hill

For one of Washington's friends, fellow intern Nathaniel Smitherman, working at the AOC has been an opportunity to tap into a lifelong love for classical architecture. Since childhood, Smitherman enjoyed watching home renovation TV shows with his mother and grandmother — both of whom are artists as well. His military family moved around the country quite a bit, and each time Smitherman would study the floor plan of the new house in detail. ACBA was perhaps a more obvious choice for him, especially since attending would give him a chance to be immersed in the classical architecture found in Charleston.

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    Portrait of a person.

Nathaniel SmithermanSmitherman came to the AOC via the ACBA partnership and lived with other interns on Capitol Hill while he served as an Architecture Aide with the Senate Office Buildings jurisdiction. He often went for runs between their shared apartment and Capitol campus buildings, taking time afterwards to sketch what he saw. His AOC supervisor recognized his talent and asked if he could render images of the Senate office buildings, since photographs were some of the only artistic representations of them that existed.

"That was really amazing for me," Smitherman said. "I had this opportunity to 'flex' my art muscles, while still thinking about architecture and doing something lasting in the internship."

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    Drawing.

Nathaniel Smitherman’s illustration of the Hart Senate Office Building.An Ongoing Legacy

The AOC's robust intern program has continued to grow in its scope and program offerings. Interns support a diverse range of Capitol campus functions, and some are more behind-the-scenes than others.

Markiya Gothard, who spent the summer as an Office Clerk with the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), laughed when asked about her first day at the AOC. "The CVC is a maze," she said. "It took me a while to find my way down here!"

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    Portrait of a person.

Markiya GothardBut find her way, she did: Gothard came to the AOC after seeing the intern opening listed on USAJOBS.gov. Growing up in Prince George's County, Maryland, she trained intensively in dance and musical theater. Her love for the performing arts inspired her to study visual art at the college level. Now, the Towson University student majors in art history, with a minor in museum studies. Her academic interests pulled her toward the AOC's mission — and the internship program, she thought, could help her decide where in the field she might pursue a career.

"Before coming here, I definitely thought I'd take a more curatorial route in the art world," Gothard said. "Now, I’m realizing that I also enjoy the operations side of things."

Throughout the summer, Gothard assisted the CVC Gift Shop team in conducting market research and identifying vendors whose products can be sold in the U.S. Capitol. It can be difficult to find the perfect goods, since everything sold within the CVC Gift Shop must be made in the United States, and many need to have an educational component. "If you've ever wondered why the CVC Gift Shop doesn't have snow globes,” Gothard joked, "it's because it's so hard to find ones that are made in the United States!"

Gothard's largest project was her summer research paper, which drew the distinctions and similarities between historical and cultural institutions

Looking to the Future

Another AOC intern would likely be interested in Gothard's research: Mason Lamb, an ACBA student and Architecture Aide in the House Office Buildings jurisdiction, has a special place in his heart for historic preservation. He rarely leaves home without a drawing instrument and spent many evenings and weekends in local D.C. museums, historic towns like Harper's Ferry or hiking spots in Northern Virginia. He often can be found copying designs from architects known as the "great masters," and enjoyed coming into work at his team's office in the Rayburn House Office Building, which features a blend of classically styled and modern architectural elements.

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    Portrait of a person.

Mason Lamb"I have to say, though," Lamb remarked. "I think the most beautiful structure on campus is the Library of Congress' Thomas Jefferson Building!"

A native North Carolinian, he named meeting one of his home state's senators as a highlight of the summer. He also had the chance to work on several long-standing projects, including renovating old telephone closets that are now being used for staff taking video calls, and creating fact sheets for each House office building. Participation in these efforts came as a pleasant surprise.

"Before I started here, I figured I'd spend most of my time fetching coffee and running errands," Lamb said. "The work I've gotten to do makes me really want to come back to the AOC — hopefully after graduation!"

Though summer has passed and winter approaches, we're still looking forward to the next class of AOC interns, who bring a fresh and industrious spirit to the AOC mission. As we begin to plan for future programs, we hope to see our 2023 interns back on the Capitol campus one day.

***Our summer 2024 internships are open now through February 2, 2024. Apply today!***
Comments
    
  
    
Micah Brown (not verified)PermalinkJanuary 2, 2024 - 9:51pmI would love to get an opportunity to participate in your summer internship program even though I'm still taking my high school classes online. This program would give me a chance to do as well as learn a new trade in life and be able to help do something to better our city and communities. It's programs like this help me and other people a chance to better ourselves and love we do and hope to obtain a position in the field we're doing to be the best at what we do.I would really appreciate this opportunity of interest that I've been reading about.
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