YPSILANTI – Trinity Perkins, an Honors College student at Eastern Michigan University (EMU) majoring in Criminology with a minor in Public Law and Government, spent her summer interning in Washington, D.C. through a full-ride scholarship. Perkins was one of three Michigan students selected for this opportunity.
Her internship took place at The Faith & Politics Institute (FPI), an organization focused on encouraging productive conversations among political leaders through nonpartisan work. FPI’s programs are designed to connect future generations with each other and current national leaders.
During her time with FPI as part of the John Robert Lewis Scholars & Fellows program, Perkins and other undergraduate and graduate participants conducted research projects aimed at preserving oral histories and attended congressional pilgrimages.
“It was really interesting to see everyone coming from different aspects of life,” Perkins said.
In addition to weekly classes required by the program, she managed logistics for various FPI events. She also attended multiple House and Senate hearings where she had opportunities to network with political figures. Her supervisor arranged meetings with judges and lawyers so that interns could discuss career paths relevant to their interests.
“That’s something I can’t just get here—I can’t just go to a hearing, meet all of these people, and get a different perspective at the same time,” Perkins said. “It was important for me to see that some supervisors in these internships actually really care about development outside of just their organization.”
Perkins encouraged students seeking internships to apply broadly rather than only within their main field of study.
“I’m a criminology student. The Faith & Politics Institute isn’t technically criminology, it’s my minor if anything—and not even that,” she said. “At first, I was focused on a lot of the criminal internships, so it felt draining to not get those ones every time.”
Reflecting on her experience, she added: “I feel accomplished with my internship. I now know the other ones wouldn’t have been a good fit for me, so it’s amazing that I did keep applying and that I did branch out from what I was originally, specifically looking for.”
Eastern Michigan University began as an institution focused on teacher preparation in 1849 but has since developed into a comprehensive public university offering more than 200 undergraduate majors and minors along with various graduate programs https://www.emich.edu/. EMU is recognized nationally for its programs in education, business, health sciences and the arts https://www.emich.edu/. The university maintains its primary campus in Ypsilanti while also providing online education options https://www.emich.edu/.
According to its official website https://www.emich.edu/, EMU aims to prepare students for significant contributions through hands-on learning experiences like internships that build professional skills and networks.
