UNM Students Selected as 2009 Udall Congressional Interns
Jacob Keyes, a 3L, and Honor Keeler, a 2L, have been selected as 2009 Native American Congressional Interns by the Morris K. Udall Foundation. They will join 11 other students from 13 tribes and nine universities in Washington, D.C., this summer for an intensive 10-week program.
Keyes is a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and Keeler is a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.
This highly regarded internship program is intended to provide Native Americans and Alaska Natives with an insider's view of the federal government. Typically, interns are placed in competitive positions in U.S. Senate and House offices, committees, cabinet departments and the White House, where they are able to observe government decision-making processes first-hand.
The foundation awards the merit-based internships every summer to college juniors or seniors or recent graduates of tribal or four-year colleges. Interns also might be graduate or law students who have demonstrated an interest in fields related to tribal public policy, such as tribal governance, tribal law, Native American education, Native American health, Native American justice, natural resource protection, cultural preservation and revitalization and Native American economic development.
Since its inception in 1996, 149 Native American/Alaska Native students from 84 tribes have participated in the program.
The Morris K. Udall Foundation is an independent federal agency that was created by Congress in 1992 to honor Congressman Udall’s legacy of public service. The foundation’s education programs are supported by a trust fund in the U.S. Treasury and contributions from the private sector.