“Behind an elected official is an army of individuals who dedicate their time, and have genuine interest, in improving the communities they represent and live in…I have a newfound respect and admiration for all of these individuals.”
These are just a couple of the lessons that Goldman Fellow Jesse Sanchez ’25 learned through the St. Louis Fellows Program and his internship at the St. Louis Board of Aldermen this summer..
The Board of Aldermen fulfilled two of Sanchez’s interests: social work and law. The biggest draw to government for Sanchez, however, is not necessarily what he knew about government—but rather all that he didn’t know.
“I wondered what happens behind the opaque windows and closed doors of city hall, the capitol, or Congress,” Sanchez said about why he decided to pursue an internship in government. He further explains his motivation of “an undying curiosity to know what takes place behind the enigmatic image of government.”
Upon accepting his internship at the Board of Aldermen, Sanchez saw much more clearly exactly how this city is run. The Board of Aldermen works with the Mayor’s Office to facilitate the process of new legislation. In a process called “perfection,” bills are introduced to the committee for either approval or denial after a series of debates. The president of the Board of Aldermen, along with the mayor and comptroller, have authority over how the city’s funds are allocated.
The current board president, Megan Ellyia Green, gave Sanchez the task of researching different ways a settlement of about $258 million from the former St. Louis Rams football team can be applied to the needs of the city.
“What is distinctive about this settlement is that there are no restrictions in how the settlement is invested, endowed, or spent. Typically, money appropriated by the Board, or American Rescue Plan funds, has restrictions in its use,” Sanchez explained.
He finds that exchanging a simple “hello!” with his coworkers is one of the most fulfilling parts of his day.
“What I feel I have received from my internship is a heightened sense and a deeper appreciation for the staff which runs government,” he said.
Sanchez detailed what a day at his internship looks like, and he put particular emphasis on the connections he made with executive secretaries and clerks.
With his profound interest in the faces behind the mask of government, Sanchez found a space in government that he hadn’t quite expected to find in the Board of Aldermen.
“I feel that working on the Board has confirmed my wishes of wanting to work in a public capacity within my life, whether that is within government or not,” he said. “There is a certain positive feeling which comes from assisting the citizens of a city—although more importantly, I have realized that at the end of the day, improving the quality of life of all preserves the heart and soul of a city, and enables it to preserve and flourish for the next generation.”