Written by: Andrew Hieger
Me at my desk in Representative Guillen’s office in the Capital
For a little over a month now, I have been interning at the Texas State Capitol as a legislative Intern. While there, I have been working for Texas State Representative Ryan Guillen who represents Texas House District thirty-one. One of the youngest people ever elected to the Texas House of Representatives, Representative Guillen has been serving in the House for nearly twenty years and has served in numerous roles such as the Chair of the House Resolutions Calendars Committee and Vice Chair of the Ways and Means Committee. Working for Representative Guillen is a great opportunity and I hope to gain many skills while interning here. I want to learn more about the professional office environment as well as how to operate and coordinate in the workplace with others such as my fellow coworkers and supervisors. These lessons will be useful and help me better acclimate to this work environment in the future if I ultimately decide to work at a place such as this. However, above all, this is a great way to observe how the Government operates on a daily basis.
Although the Texas legislature is not in session this semester, there is still a lot of work to be done in preparation for the new session starting in January. While working for Representative Guillen, I am expected to complete a number of tasks assigned to me by the Representative himself, the Chief of Staff, or other members of the office staff. Some of the tasks that I have been assigned include assisting both the Chief of Staff and the office staff with tasks such as collecting data and statistics gathered from surveying the constituents in order to craft legislation that reflects the needs of District Thirty-one.
“Texas House of Representatives chamber” Obtained from the Bullock Museum
One of the most surprising things I have discovered while working at Representative Guillen’s office is how many people contact their state representatives. I must admit before I began working for Representative Guillen, I was unaware of just how many people cared about their local elections and state politics. However, even after my short experience working in the Texas Capital, I have learned just how many people care about their state and local elections and politicians. With over one-hundred and seventy-five thousand constituents in district thirty-one, there can be a lot of people needing to contact the representative and I have kept busy each time I work at the office. Representative Guillen wants his office to be a welcoming place for all his constituents. As such, I am expected to assist all the constituents and other guests when they enter the office as well as answer phone calls, emails, and letters sent to the office. All of this ensures that the constituents and guests of Representative Guillen feel that they have had a good experience and were provided with the help they need. I am also responsible for scheduling and coordinating Capitol meetings and tours for visitors of Representative Guillen.
Working with Representative Guillen’s staff has been an extremely beneficial learning experience. Seeing firsthand how the Texas House of Representatives is run on a daily basis has been invaluable. Meeting constituents and learning about their different backgrounds and what Texas voters want has been an eye-opening experience for me and one that I will always be greatly appreciative of.
