Moakley Service Corp Interns Gain Experience While Following Tradition of Service

"The experience is teaching me so much. At the same time, I know my work is helping to make a difference for others, and that's a great feeling." – Tyler Dube, Moakley intern in Massachusetts State Senate

Emily Brady is happy to be getting some career experience in the summer before senior year, but even more pleased that she’s performing a meaningful service as she promotes the services of Christopher’s Haven, a home away from home for children and their families who are being treated for cancer.

Meanwhile Tyler Dube is gaining public policy experience as he works alongside Sen. Michael Rush, D-West Roxbury, at the State House.

Dube and Brady are among the nine students selected to participate in the Moakley Service Corps summer program. The program, which operates out of the Moakley Institute at Suffolk, provides internship opportunities and a modest stipend. Students work for local nonprofit organizations.

“Moakley Service Corps members carry forward the late congressman’s tireless advocacy for Massachusetts’s most vulnerable populations – children, the elderly, and veterans – and policy areas such as affordable housing, the environment and public education,” says Julia Collins Howington, University archivist and Moakley Institute director. “At the same time, they gain practical work experience addressing critical community needs in Boston’s neighborhoods.”

Dube, a junior at Suffolk, is proud to follow in the footsteps of the late congressman John Joseph "Joe" Moakley.

“This internship is an incredible opportunity for me,” he says. “I want to pursue a career that involves shaping public policy, particularly in the area of criminal justice. Working for Senator Rush has given me an inside view of our government in action. The experience is teaching me so much. At the same time, I know my work is helping to make a difference for others, and that's a great feeling.”

Brady, an advertising major, is a social media intern at Christopher’s Haven.

“This is a residence for children with cancer and their families who travel far for treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital,” she says.

In her role, Brady is helping spread the word about the organization by building a presence on Facebook and Twitter.

“I'm also involved with different fund-raising events,” she says. “I’m fortunate I see the impact of our work. One minute I'm writing copy for a newsletter and the next I'm on the floor playing with one of the kids.”

“I think Joe Moakley would be proud that there are students motivated to go out and work for social justice and important causes,” says Brady. “I'm here not just for my career, but to do something meaningful.”

The Moakley Corps program, jointly cosponsored by the Moakley Archive and Institute and the S.O.U.L.S. Center for Community Engagement and generously supported by the Moakley Foundation, is a new addition to University offerings that integrate career development, community engagement and social responsibility. Available to undergraduate upperclassmen and graduate students, the Moakley Corps summer interns are paid for their service and complete a training program that focuses on career preparedness and social justice.