Udall Foundation Awards 2023 Native American Congressional Internships
Posted:
3/31/2023
The Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation (Udall Foundation) and the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy (NNI), a program of the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy at The University of Arizona, are pleased to announce the selection of the 2023 Native American Congressional Interns. The newest class of Udall Interns comprises 12 students representing 11 Tribes and 10 universities from around the country. The Udall Interns were selected by an independent review committee on the basis of academic achievement, leadership, and demonstrated commitment to careers in Tribal public policy. From 1996 through 2022, 306 students from 134 Tribes have participated in the Internship.
The Udall Foundation’s Native American Congressional Internship Program (Internship), funded and comanaged by NNI, provides Native American and Alaska Native undergraduate, graduate, and law students the opportunity to gain practical experience with the Federal legislative process in order to understand firsthand the government-to-government relationship between Tribes and the Federal Government. Interns serve in Congressional and Federal agency offices and often research issues important to Tribal communities, experience an insider's view of the Federal Government, and enhance their understanding of nation-building and Tribal self-governance. The Udall Interns will complete an intensive 10-week internship in the summer of 2023 in Washington, D.C. Special enrichment activities will provide opportunities to meet with key policymakers.
The 2023 Udall Interns are:
- Autumn R. Adams, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, Arizona State University.
- Elise N. Blasingame, Osage Nation, University of Georgia.
- Ayden M.C. Clytus, Navajo Nation, Arizona State University.
- Grace E. Fox, Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, Columbia University.
- Morgan T. Gray, Chickasaw Nation, George Washington University.
- Marisa L. Joseph, Tulalip Tribes of the Tulalip Reservation, Dartmouth College.
- Eldred D. Lesansee, Pueblo of Jemez, Columbia University.
- Celeste L. Lucero, Pueblo of Isleta, University of New Mexico.
- Jaylon E. Romine, Muscogee (Creek) Nation, Haskell Indian Nations University.
- Delanie M. Seals, Chickasaw Nation, East Central University.
- Laura V. Stinson, Tuscarora Nation of New York, Nova Southeastern University.
- Rory C. Wheeler, Seneca Nation of New York, Michigan State University.
Click to learn more about the Udall Internship Program and meet the 2023 Udall Interns.
More Information
For additional information about NNI and the Udall Internship Program, please contact Alicia Harris at harris@udall.gov.
About the Udall Foundation
The Morris K. Udall Foundation was established by the U.S. Congress in 1992 as an independent executive branch agency to honor Morris K. Udall's lasting impact on this Nation’s environment, public lands, and natural resources, and his support of the rights and self-governance of Native Americans and Alaska Natives. In 2009, Congress enacted legislation to also honor Stewart L. Udall for his half century of distinguished national leadership in environmental and Native American policy. The agency is known today as the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation (Udall Foundation) and is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.
The Udall Foundation is authorized by Congress to:
- Award Scholarships, Fellowships, and Internships for study in fields related to the environment and to Native Americans and Alaska Natives in fields related to health care and Tribal public policy.
- Connect youth to the Nation’s public lands and natural resources to foster greater understanding, appreciation, stewardship, and enjoyment of those lands and resources through photography, positive outdoor experiences, and environmental education through the Stewart L. Udall Parks in Focus® Program.
- Provide funding to the Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy to conduct policy research and outreach on the environment and related themes.
- Provide funding to the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy, a program of the Udall Center, for research, education, and outreach on Native American and Alaska Native health care issues and Tribal public policy issues.
- Provide funding through the Udall Center to The University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections to serve as the repository for the papers of Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall and other such public papers as may be appropriate and assure such papers' availability to the public.
- Provide impartial collaboration, consensus-building, training, and conflict resolution services on a wide range of environmental, natural and cultural resources, Tribal, and public lands issues, conflicts, and disputes involving the Federal Government through the John S. McCain III National Center for Environmental Conflict Resolution.
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