Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 32, Number 5, 1 May 2015 — DC program to offer Presidential Campaign Boot Camp in the fall [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

DC program to offer Presidential Campaign Boot Camp in the fall

Native students ean apply for a full scholanship

By Lisa Asato Aprogram that brings eollege students to study, intern and network in Washington, D.C., is launching a Presidential Campaign Boot Camp this fall that includes a week in New Hampshire working with a campaign of their choosing in the run-up to the nation's first primary. Greg Lehel, director of the Semester in Washington Politics at George Washington University, said he's wanted to do the program for a long time, especially in a yearlike 2016 when a sitting president isn't running for re-election, because it provides a broader view of the campaign process. "It's a really rare and special opportunity for students," Lehel said. "It may not eome around again

for another eight years, to have the opportunity to see the campaigns and experience them from that close a range is really a valuable tool and a really great learning experience for students." The boot eamp runs Aug. 31 to Dec. 11, and includes coursework at George Washington University, an internship in D.C. and a week in New Hampshire. Two or three full scholarships are available for native students, including Native Hawaiians, to participate in the boot eamp, Lehel said. The scholarship, through the university's Native American Poliheal Leadership Program, covers tuition and fees for the courses, housing, a small stipend for books and living expenses, and SEE DG PR0GRAM ON PAGE 12

Presidential Campaign Boot Camp When: Aug. 31 to Dec. 11 Where: George Washington University, including a week in New Hampshire Apply: semesterinwashington.gwu.edu/apply Deadline: lune 1 lnfo: semesterinwashington.gwu.edu Note: To designate that you're applying forthe scholarship for native students, go to semesterinwashington. gwu.edu. apply and visit the application form page. Under "Session" choosethe Presidential Campaign Boot Camp in the dropdown box. Then, under "Program" select Native American Political Leadership Program. Correction: The print version of this sidebar refers incorrectly to the end date of the program. It is Dec. 11, not Dec. 31.

Then-U.S. Sen. John F. Kennedy stops in a diner in Nashua, New Hampshire, during the 1 960 primary campaign. - Courtesy: John F. Kennedy Presidential Ubrary and Museum, Boston

DC PR0GRAM Continued from page 6

round-trip airfare to D.C. Boot eamp participants will hear from high-profile guest speakers, including national spokespeople for eaeh of the poliheal parties, authors, nahonal political media, pollsters and media consultants. The program also links - virtually - the D.C. students with students at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, whieh will host its own slew of guest speakers. The Bipartisan Policy Center is covering the cost of travel and hotel for participants' New Hampshire visit. Kawika Riley, OHA's chief advocate and a former lecturer in the Semester in Washington program, called the Presidential Campaign Boot Camp an "exciting new initiative." Semester in Washington - of whieh the boot eamp is a part - has always had components for students to learn about campaigns

but the boot eamp takes it further, he said. He described Semester in Washington as a "political immersion program." "During the day, students work in politics, they work for congressional offices, other advocacy groups, some work for OHA," Riley said. "By night, they take graduate-level courses at George Washington University Graduate School of Poliheal Management, the premier applied politics graduate school in the country." Riley encouraged Native Hawai-

ians to take advantage of the opportunities Semester in Washington offers, adding, "When I was a graduate student at George Washington, this opportunity was not available to Native Hawaiians." The doors were opened to Native Hawaiians through the NAPLP scholarship less than a decade ago, he said. "Opportunities are had by the people who show up," he said. "So if this is something they're interested in, they need to take that step for themselves whether it's for this boot eamp training or another one of the opportunities that the program provides."

Speaking from experience In OHA's Washington, D.C. Bureau, Catelin Aiwohi and Jacob Bryan Aki know firsthand what the Semester in Washington program has to offer. Aiwohi eame to OHA as an intem in the program in 2013 and is now the executive assistant to the bureau chief. "I was very passionate about advocating for Native Hawaiians and my culture, and I wasn't sure what I wanted to do after college," Aiwohi said. "But I got my degree in elementary education and thought this would be a perfect opportunity to learn more about how politics and policy works and how different laws and bills are enacted that very mueh affects our communities. "Since that introduction to D.C., I've heeome very immersed in the work here and I ean see the importance of having Native Hawaiians in positions of leadership within the federal government in order to influenee and provide a Native Hawaiian perspective on topics that are very

important and influential." Aki, a 20-year-oldNative Hawaiian in the current Semester in Washington program, is interning in OHA's D.C. bureau. A University of Hawai'i sophomore studying Hawaiian studies and Hawaiian language, he said the program has inspired himto go to law school and one day run for Congress. "Being here in D.C. I didn't only have the opportunity to learn more about federal policy and the legislative process, but I've also made connections with other natives up here from different tribes," he said. "I've also gotten to connect with other people from back home that are working up here, so I've also created connections and now have a network of contacts in D.C." The overall experience, he said, made himrealize the need for more Hawaiian voices in D.C. "For me, that's been the solidifying moment, because I see the need and it inspired me to finish up my degree and go into a field where I ean possibly represent our community back home." ■

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Kawika Riley, third from left, with his students in George Washington's Native Amehean Politieal Leadership Program. - Courtesy: NAPLP