Allegheny College Senior Pasquale DiFrancesco Chosen for House Legislative Program

Dec. 15, 2014 — Allegheny College senior Pasquale DiFrancesco, of Wexford, Pa., has been awarded a Pennsylvania House Legislative Fellowship for 13 weeks beginning January 12, 2015.

The highly competitive fellowship program places students in leadership offices, such as offices of committee chairmen, in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. DiFrancesco will be placed in the office of Democratic Whip Mike Hanna. The fellowship also provides fellows with access to weekly workshops with key thinkers, planners and decision makers.

Fellows attend committee hearings and meetings as well as House Sessions. The final project for each fellow is to research, draft and present a piece of legislation.

“The experiences gained by participating in this fellowship will only further increase the value of my degree from Allegheny College to potential employers and graduate schools,” said DiFrancesco. “At this point in my college career, I believe the fellowship experience will provide me with exactly the skills and connections I need to further my educational and professional goals.”

A double major in political science and environmental studies at Allegheny College, DiFrancesco works in the Meadville community as an AmeriCorps Bonner Scholar. He serves as support coordinator at St. Benedict Education Center, where his responsibilities include working with clients in need on job search and financial management skills and where he created and implemented the F.A.I.T.H. Project (Finding Adults in Transition Help) to help streamline volunteer efforts and enhance one-on-one assistance.

He has also interned at the North American Association for Environmental Education, based in Washington, D.C. He has studied at the Center for Hellenic Studies at Harvard and served as a program advisor for the Fund for American Studies in Washington, D.C.

At Allegheny College, DiFrancesco is a student representative on the college’s Finance and Facilities Committee, which helps to determine planning policy for the college. In addition, he has served as treasurer of Allegheny Student Government and as a project leader with the college’s Center for Political Participation.

Following graduation this May, DiFrancesco plans to pursue a career in politics, with an environmental focus, in the nation’s capital.