NECC Student Jennifer Vasquez and State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues

Northern Essex Community College student Jennifer Vasquez of Lawrence spent her  summer at the Massachusetts State House interning for State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues.

Vasquez was selected for the Massachusetts Community College Council’s Legislative Internship Program, which gives community college students the opportunity to learn first-hand about state government and to explore a related career in government and politics.  Students received a stipend from the MCCC to cover travel and other costs.

Vasquez says she learned a great deal, including some “life lessons.”  “The lesson that will stay with me the most is that to make a difference, you have to get involved.”

She credits Steven Russell, her U.S. History II professor, with encouraging her to apply for the internship. “He believed in me and in my capacities.  He made me believe in myself.”

An eight-year resident of Lawrence, Vasquez graduated from high school in Canada in 1994.  She is majoring in Early Childhood Education at Northern Essex, and after graduating this coming spring, she plans to pursue a bachelor degree in elementary education.  She volunteers her time teaching preschoolers at Community Day Care in Lawrence with the Jumpstart for Young Children Program.