As the Director of UC’s Washington Center, I welcome all of you who are arriving for the Fall term. For those of you who do not know me, I am a Professor of Political Science at UC Berkeley as well as the Center’s Director. Like the professors at your home campuses, I have published many books and articles in my thirty years as an academic, but more than most, I have an enduring interest in experiential
political learning. My own career was very positively influenced by a year as a state redistricting consultant in the early eighties, and since that time, I have worked with governments at all levels and the media in various capacities. I know first hand how valuable political sector and nonprofit experience can be.
Working with student representatives, I instituted a number of changes to improve programming and the quality of life for undergraduates at the Center. I look forward to continuing that discussion and making further improvements. I want the UC undergraduate intern program to be as innovative and valuable as possible. You will see that the Center’s staff is very dedicated and skilled in their work. I urge you to participate in as many of the Center’s forums and workshops as possible so that you get the most you can out of your Washington experience.
In the meantime, get unpacked, poke your nose around town and get a sense of what goes on in the nation’s capital. Based on the experiences of students before you, you are about to have a wonderful time at the Center.
Bruce Cain
