When senior Matthew Keatley talks about his internship with the Connecticut General Assembly, he describes the way he and the other 37 legislative interns feel about their opportunity.
“Most people show up to work and say, ‘Oh my god, I have so much work!’ All of us show up and say, ‘Oh my god! I have so much work and I get to write testimony, sit in on meetings, answer constituent calls…we’re excited to be there and excited to have work to do.”
Matthew, a communication major, spends two days a week working in Hartford with the Republican Caucus and State Rep. Lezlye Zupkus, a ranking member of the Education Committee. He assists with a range of assignments including office tasks, bill tracking, and meeting preparation, a process he calls “fascinating.”
“As of right now, there are a ton of public hearings that run from morning to evening. I am gaining a good understanding of how the public is perceiving some pieces of legislation and voicing their concerns. There are many bills before the committees, including creating a task force to combat antisemitism in public schools, how to better fund special education, and increasing pay for paraeducators. People testifying are passionate.”
Matthew uses skills developed through his coursework at Mitchell, especially interpersonal communication, public speaking, and social media. In addition, he draws on all the Mitchell Abilities, with special attention to communication, which he said “is the entire game. If you don’t communicate, nothing will get done. If you can’t communicate, you’re not going to last long.”
He is certain that the encouragement he received from his Mitchell professors—to apply for the internship and to succeed in the classroom—serve him well.
“Mitchell’s tight-knit community—its faculty and staff—have enhanced my educational experience and will help me in my professional life. A lot of them serve in public roles in their communities, have academic connections, or share their own life experiences in ways that inspire me.”
A Love of History and Politics
An American history buff who is minoring in government and history, Matthew developed an interest in American politics as a teenager. The 2016 presidential campaign “turned the lightbulb on,” and he read the news daily to stay current.
Closer to home, a field trip to the place where he now interns sparked his interest.
“When I was 17, I took a field trip with my high school civics class to the state legislature and met with our local legislator. After her presentation, I thanked her and said what she was doing was cool. She responded that no one my age would think this was cool. Then I asked her how I could get involved.”
From that conversation, Matthew went on to help with local, state, and federal campaigns, including running the entire campaign in 2024 for the state representative he met on his high school field trip.
He also ran for and won his own spot on his town council when he was 21. Today, he sits on four boards and committees. His hands-on experience with political campaigns and serving in local government helped prepare him mentally for some aspects of interning in state government.
“Town council is a little more relaxed than the legislature, but the decorum is the same. In both you’re there to do a job and to serve people. Constituents either are not pleased with how things are going, or they are and want things to be enhanced.”
Matthew’s initial internship challenge was feeling comfortable in the halls of state government.
“It’s an intimidating place for anyone,” he said. “For me it didn’t last longer than a week or two after orientation. The key is making sure you’re doing what you’re supposed to do, showing up on time, being prepared, and being professional.”
In addition to human resources training on things like sexual harassment, Matthew and the other interns were trained in the budget process and the tools of research.
“We need to know the best ways to help our legislators if they ask us. We’re in a budget season right now and must have a working knowledge of the executive branch and legislative branch budget process, which is intricate. We also access websites and libraries to find things like statutes, which I’m asked for daily.”
Matthew enjoys the camaraderie with the other interns and said, “we’re working with the Republicans and the Democrats, and we’re all friends. We hang out and grab lunch together. If we have the same problem with a work assignment, we can call one another and ask.”
His observation of the Connecticut state legislature is that “there is partisanship, but it doesn’t last long. There is a lot of compromise and a lot of letting the other party into the room for discussion. This is something that you don’t see in the news all that often. The legislators for both political parties care about what they’re working on, want to show up, want to do their work, and know who it impacts in our small state.”
Future Plans
Matthew’s internship has solidified his interest in working in the communications field.
“I approached the caucus’s communications team to say that I’m an aspiring communications professional and offered to help when I am not working on other things for my legislator. I hope to learn more from them. In past political campaigns, I’ve worked on social media, written press releases, and scheduled media interviews. I like having my thumb on the pulse of what’s going on and putting out stories that people read and understand. That’s exciting to me.”
He is not sure if his work after graduation will be a communications job in government or another sector. For now, he is grateful to have gotten the push to apply for the legislative internship, from the grounds of a college campus he considers to be “the best in all of Connecticut.”
“I am really enjoying my internship and urge other students interested in local or state politics to apply. This program is great for jumping into the process, going in depth, and learning who the players are. It’s a chess game, and you’ll get a good understanding of how it’s done.”
