Internship Location: Brownsville TX
Organization Type: Nonprofit/NGO
Policy Areas: Law/Re-Entry
During my time at Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, I got to practice my legal skills in the context of a nonprofit organization. I learned about how nonprofits work with their stakeholders to satisfy their requirements, while still staying true the overarching mission. The skills I learned in my Public Management class helped me put the importance of the stakeholders and their values into perspective at an organization. Here, I learned how staff attorney’s select their cases on a politically neutral basis to be able to provide legal services to indigent citizens and low-income communities. I also learned to navigate the different record keeping systems within multiple Texas local governments. The most valuable part of this internship was being able to make an impact in the US-Mexico border region, as working within these communities is a passion of mine. I would recommend interning with this organization, in either a legal or policy capacity, because it’s a great opportunity to work within a robust nonprofit organization that serves a large part of Texas. This experience gave me such an appreciation for legal aids and truly deepened my commitment to public service.