Name: Sofia Diaz
Class Year: 2026
Major:  Political Science, Sociology
 
Internship Organization:  Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
Internship Title:   Counselor
Location:  Washington, DC
 
What’s happening at your internship? We would love to hear what kind of work you are doing!  

This summer, I had the opportunity to work mentoring a cohort of high school students at the annual Free Speech forum, where I was able to provide program support by facilitating discussions and homerooms on free speech, constitutional, and First Amendment rights. The Free Speech forum is a week-long program organized by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) where high school students engage with free speech rights, hear from speakers like Mary Beth Tinker on their rights, and engage with Capitol Hill through field trips and other daily activities. I was also in charge of preparing detailed incident reports for FIRE staff, documenting participant experiences, and promoting a safe, inclusive environment for students by modeling good behavior and addressing participants’ needs. I was also able to gain more knowledge about constitutional law, network and work alongside other college student counselors from universities across the country, such as the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard, Georgetown, Columbia, UChicago, and Penn State, who were also passionate about the free speech of students on our college campuses.
 
Why did you apply for this internship?  

Alongside Student Rights Pioneer, Mary Beth Tinker

As a pre-law student, I wanted an insight into constitutional law and working with organizations that also focus on promoting student rights.
 
What has been your favorite part of this internship? 

My favorite part of working at the forum has been being a mentor for high school students and receiving thank-you notes from them at the end of the program. They were an excellent group of high school girls who were intellectually curious, had leadership potential, and were eager to learn as much as they could about First Amendment rights as students. Many of them were involved in debate teams at their different high schools, founded their own NGOs addressing many other social issues, or were already working on researching public policy issues. Being surrounded by young, bright minds was definitely an inspiring and rewarding experience, and seeing the bond that they created around constitutional law and students’ rights was truly a life-changing opportunity. 

Can you talk about the skills you are learning and why they are important to you?  

View of the FIRE office in Philadelphia overlooking the Liberty Bell

Some of the skills that I enhanced from this experience were public speaking skills, gaining more knowledge about a career in constitutional law as a pre-law student, facilitating discussions and programming, and improving my writing report skills, all of this while having the opportunity to network on the Hill. 

Can you give us three adjectives and three nouns that describe your internship experience? 

Three adjectives will be rewarding, engaging, and innovative and three nouns would be constitution, Washington, and rights.