photo: Office view at sunrise by psbphotography
Post orientation, transitioning into a useful member of Representative Spohnholz’s team continues to be a learning experience. This week really felt like things became official, I signed my contract, I got set up on office computers, observed committee and floor sessions, and got my very own governmental email.
Overall it has been both a very busy week and a welcoming one. With the house of representatives not yet organized it is still difficult to say what we will be doing/working on to support Representative Spohnholz, however getting access to the legislative tools (as well as utilizing the wonderful online set up for bills/policies) made it possible to explore more legislation from prior sessions.
As of right now I am getting to know my “surroundings”, which is probably the best thing for me as I am completely new to the world of politics outside of academic research. However, I do see some overlapping concepts; applying my anthropological background, it was fascinating to learn that the concept of linguistic and language are equally important in legislative environments as they are in academic settings. This intrigued me as I am hoping to focus much of my thesis material on the use of legislative language in the dissection of bills which impact Alaska’s Indigenous populations. For now, these observations are already helping me to prepare research material to use later in arguing my thesis, for that I am excited.
To summarized, this week has not been the quick jump straight in legislative processes, which I’m thankful as I have been allowed to explore, familiarize, and observe much more while still taking the time to consider things for myself more than I might during the busy session. There is much more to learn, and I look forward to the snippets I have already had privy to! Until next week, stay healthy!
Pakak Sophie