For eight weeks this past summer, Patrick Dimasin ’27 took a deep dive into the world of policy in Washington, D.C.
As a Roosevelt in Washington fellow, Dimasin had a front-row seat to research, organizing and advocacy and how these areas interact to shape policy.
The public policy analysis major from Las Vegas talked to us about how the fellowship dovetailed with his studies at Pomona and confirmed his desire to serve as a public defender.
What were the components of the Roosevelt in Washington fellowship?
The first component was programming at the Roosevelt Institute, which is a domestic economic policy think tank. We received mentorship and professional development through skill-building workshops and networking with peers, alumni and policy leaders. We held weekly discussions with national nonprofit leaders on a range of economic issues, like AI, consumer finances, healthcare and unions.
The second component was an internship placement at one of Roosevelt’s partner organizations. My partner organization was The American Prospect, a progressive policy magazine based in Washington, D.C. They provide news analysis and reporting of current events and domestic policies. It was a wonderful experience getting to work at the Prospect.
What did you do at your internship?
I was an editorial intern. I was responsible for fact checking and looking at other journalists’ articles. I also wrote and published my own articles in the Prospect. I was primarily reporting and analyzing news on public health and immigration topics.
Had you ever done journalistic work before?
No, my background had primarily been in academic research and writing. I have some experience with policy writing and all the ways you change your messaging when you’re talking about policy to people, but I’d never done anything in journalism or editorial work.
I fell in love with journalism. There’s so much more emphasis on narrative and storytelling. When, for example, a think tank releases a policy paper, there are a lot of numbers and statistics, but it’s very easy to forget the actual human stories and narratives behind those numbers and statistics. My summer was a masterful lesson in thinking about narratives, the quality of experiences and communication.
How did the fellowship impact your future career plans?
It reinforced what I already want to do, which is to go to law school and then work in the fields of public defense and immigration law. A big portion of that career is communicating in front of people. You’re either in front of a trial judge and jury, making sense of evidence presented during trial, or you’re in front of an appellate judge, making arguments from the trial court’s record.
I also interviewed numerous people for my articles and got to hear what’s happening on the ground—how the community is really feeling. That direct engagement was the most impactful part of my internship.
How did Pomona prepare you for this experience?
The academics at Pomona helped me with the fast-paced writing. I needed to turn around articles within a week-and-a-half timeline, and these articles were easily between 1,500-2,000 words. Coming from my classes at Pomona, I felt I had some experience under my belt to be able to do my job.