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NH Students Take Part in College to Congress

Published Tuesday Jun 18, 2019

College2Congress

Khymaya “Maya” Perkins, (left) a student at Dartmouth and Alyssa Kurke, a student at American University, are among 18 students selected for College to Congress program.


Two New Hampshire students are headed off to Washington D.C. to participate in a new program, College to Congress.

Dartmouth student Khymaya “Maya” Perkins will intern for the House Democratic Caucus under Chairman Hakeem Jeffries.

District 1 Congressman Chris Pappas will host Alyssa Kurke, a student at American University. Perkins and Kurke are among 18 students nationwide selected for the 2019 class.

College to Congress is a national nonprofit that provides pathways for high-achieving students from low-income backgrounds to launch careers in public service. The program covers expenses relative to the internship including travel, housing, meals, and a professional wardrobe, amounting to more than $10,000 in funding.

“Programs like College to Congress are critical in bringing a diversity of ideas and backgrounds to Washington while providing bright young men and women the opportunity to reach their full potential,” says Pappas. “We look forward to hosting Alyssa this summer as she learns more about our nation’s legislative process and the work we are doing in Washington to help families across the Granite State.”

College to Congress received a record number of applications this year, with more than 1,015 applications from 38 states. This year’s group of interns were selected through a rigorous application process involving a bipartisan panel of 10 volunteer judges.

In addition to the full-time internship, College to Congress interns are paired with personal, policy, and professional mentors and will participate in a weekly leadership series covering topics from financial planning to effective political advocacy. The summer will culminate with College to Congress’ inaugural Summer School Soiree on July 17.

To date, College to Congress has raised more than $1 million to connect Pell-grant eligible and other students with financial need to congressional internship opportunities and partners with 60 congressional offices on both sides of the aisle.

Kurke and Perkins’ summer will be documented here. The full list of congressional members on College to Congress’ host committee can be found here.

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