Dec. 2, 2015 – Allegheny College senior Abby Lombard, of Syracuse, New York, has been awarded a Pennsylvania House Legislative Fellowship for 13 weeks beginning Jan. 12, 2016.
The highly competitive fellowship program places students in leadership offices, such as offices of committee chairmen, in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. As one of the only legislative fellows this year to be placed on two committees, Lombard will be working with the Veterans Affairs/Emergency Preparedness and the Transportation committees.
The program provides fellows with access to weekly workshops with key thinkers, planners and decision makers. Fellows also 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.
“My dream is to enter into the political world and eventually get into government service,” says Lombard, a history and political science double major and philosophy minor. “I’ve worked for a congressman and for local government, but I’ve never had state experience. I believe I can really benefit from this.”
“This fellowship is the perfect culmination of all the work Abby has been doing here,” says Patrick Jackson, visiting professor of religious studies and history at Allegheny who also mentors students who are applying for nationally competitive awards and fellowships. “This will bring all her experiences and knowledge together in a real-world way, not to mention the up-close, behind-the-scenes access she’s going to get to Pennsylvania lawmakers. Beyond that, she’ll also get experience being a legislator. Abby has political aspirations, so the sooner she gets used to turning ideas into policy, the better.”
During her time at Allegheny, Lombard has served as a student Fellow for Allegheny College’s Center for Political Participation. In September 2014, she traveled to Harvard University to represent Allegheny at the Bipartisan National Conference, and in spring 2015, she spent the semester studying in Australia. She is a member of Alpha Phi Omega, the college’s service fraternity; executive board president of the Residence Hall Association; student advisory board member for the Department of History; and student representative on the History and Heritage Committee.
In summer 2014, Lombard completed an internship at the Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, New York. In 2015, she interned with Congressman John Katko in Syracuse. She also has worked in the Office of the Onondaga County Executive in Syracuse.
Following graduation, Lombard has accepted a position with Deloitte Consulting in Cleveland and eventually plans to attend graduate school and run for office.
The Legislative Fellowship Program was created in 1982 by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, through the Bipartisan Management Committee. Since 1982, nearly 400 students have participated in the program, and approximately 30 percent have found employment in state government.