A possible future, with the Careers in Public Service event
Mount Holyoke College student Sindy Maldonado ’27 recaps her experiences from the most recent Careers in Public Service event in Washington, D.C.
I am certain that you can find immense beauty and opportunity to grow at Mount Holyoke College’s campus, but the College is not meant to keep you inside its humble walls forever. There is a larger world out there that can almost surpass the imagination of the student body, which is why various MHC centers, such as the Weissman Center for Leadership, host trips to cities such as Washington, D.C. These trips allow students to explore what is awaiting them outside of South Hadley.
I am a member of the class of 2027, an English major with a minor in art studio, and I attended the Weissman Center’s annual Careers in Public Service trip to Washington, D.C., on March 12 and 13. This experience was one of many that I will always cherish. I applied to attend this trip because I am an aspiring writer who is drawn to the world of investigative reporting, specifically in education and politics. I am fascinated by the culture in the District of Columbia and hope that I can call it home once I graduate from MHC. Since returning from this trip, I have had some time to reflect on the conversations I had with alums and my peers, as well as on the keynote speaker’s profound speech.
On Thursday, March 12, students and Weissman Center staff arrived in the District in the afternoon and had dinner together before heading out to meet alums at a reception. The reception began with remarks by Trisha Tanner ’00 on behalf of the Alum Association, followed by President Danielle R. Holley in conversation with Jaime Grillo, associate vice president for career readiness at the Career Development Center. Holley and Grillo spoke about career readiness initiatives, and personally, I appreciate the career communities model. In this model, there are communities that cater to specific career interests, and I am part of the journalism, marketing and media hub.
At the reception, students and alums engaged in super lively conversation — at least at my table. I shared a table with alums who work in the arts, in education and even in government. These alums ranged from those who graduated in the early 2000s to those who graduated as recently as 2023. If there was ever a time I felt truly connected to so many alums, it was definitely that night. I found out that some of them majored in English, history, Film Media Theater, politics and art history. Many of the alums at the table had even been admission ambassadors while at MHC. Admission ambassadors are students who serve as tour guides for the Office of Admission, and this is a position that a friend, who was also at the reception, and I currently hold.
What I really took away from that night was our conversation, during which we shared a piece of good advice that we had received in the past, as well as a piece of bad advice. This created a space for us to be open and really get to know about each other’s different experiences. My favorite pieces of advice were to find what makes you passionate and go for it and that it’s okay to find yourself in roles you wouldn’t have expected to be in. Do not overwork yourself, but do take every opportunity as an opportunity to learn. Once you’re an MHC student, that curiosity lives within you forever.
The following day, our first visit was to the Cannon House Office Building, home to the offices of representatives, where we got to see Massachusetts Representative Richard Neal’s office. According to his staff, he still likes to do everything with pen and paper, and his desk was covered with books, documents and newspapers. Afterward, we walked over to the United States Capitol, where we visited the Senate Chamber and the House Gallery. No phones were allowed, so you’ll have to trust me when I say it was quite the sight to see those rooms in person. Fun fact: If you’d like to visit those places with floor access, you can call your representative and kindly ask if they would be willing to offer passes. Though these were probably the cooler parts of the trip, I’d also like to discuss our last networking event, where we got to hear from keynote speaker Brandon Wolf on behalf of the Human Rights Campaign.
Wolf is a public speaker and activist for LGBTQ civil rights and gun reform. Wolf is also a survivor of the 2016 attack at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, and he told us how that brought him to advocacy and public service. Community and politics were strong elements in his talk, and at MHC, we pride ourselves on being a tight-knit community and a very active student body. However, in our world today, there are social and political issues that do affect us, even if it’s indirectly. I asked Wolf if there was any advice he could give to MHC on overcoming some of the challenges we have been facing on campus with inclusivity. He offered the following: Build a community not solely based on trauma — do not ignore the trauma — but build connections together beyond that. It’s difficult to find joy in weary times, but ultimately, this will serve to make us stronger. Advocate for and learn from each other.
