This summer we have four interns whom we’re happy to introduce: Esterlina Eli Hulu, Jack Gorsline, Rylie Robinson, and Dana Schmock. Here’s a little more about each of them.
At Strategies for Children, interns are an important part of the work we do. They help us with advocacy, research, and social media, and they ask important questions, contribute new ideas, and expand the reach of our policy work.
Esterlina Eli Hulu
“My passion lies in advocating for equitable access to quality early childhood education. Every child deserves the opportunity to thrive and receive a strong educational foundation during their early years. I am thrilled to be part of the SFC internship program, as it provides a unique platform to contribute to the field of early childhood education.”
Eli Hulu is majoring in Business Management at Bunker Hill Community College. As an intern, she is focusing on policy analysis and advocacy, with a specific focus on understanding the legislative process and crafting effective advocacy materials to drive positive change. In her free time, she enjoys learning new languages and experimenting with cooking.
Jack Gorsline
“Working at Strategies this summer to enact fundamental early childhood policy reforms has been an invaluable professional experience. From day one, Strategies’ staff placed me in a dynamic, multi-faceted role that has provided access to the front-lines of legislative advocacy on Beacon Hill.”
Gorsline is dually enrolled at Bunker Hill Community College and Northeastern University. Raised in Richmond, Virginia, Jack moved to Boston in 2020 to serve with AmeriCorps at Dearborn STEM Academy in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood. He served with AmeriCorps again at Northeastern University’s Massachusetts Promise Fellowship, and simultaneously spent a year working as a Social Justice Educator and College Advisor for La Vida Scholars Inc., in Lynn, Mass. Gorsline’s interest in education reform is informed by his diverse academic experiences as a student and a teacher. Gorsline is a founder of Bunker Hill’s student newspaper The Third Rail. And following his summer with Strategies, he plans to pursue a career in political journalism. He loves pickup basketball and thrift shopping, and he is an avid writer of op-eds and fiction.
Rylie Robinson
“My favorite experience at Strategies was going to the State House to attend the Common Start Rally. It was so great to meet everyone in person, and to see the event live. I really got the sense that I was watching change happen right in front of me.”
Robinson is a rising junior at Yale University where she is completing the Humanities major. She was excited to apply the content she has learned in her political science and sociology classes to on-the-ground research and advocacy work. In the early childhood sphere, she is particularly interested in policy solutions that address the needs of BIPOC children, families, and early educators, who are disproportionately affected by systemic inequities. In the future, Rylie hopes to continue working in the nonprofit world and potentially get a law degree.
Dana Schmock
“I have had a unique intern experience as I am a newcomer to Massachusetts’ early childhood landscape. I am from Wisconsin, and while we do have similar challenges, I am realizing that learning about the field in a new state is much like learning a new dialect of a language. I am so grateful for the recorded 9:30 calls and The Early Childhood Agenda’s meetings. They have helped me navigate the experiences of early childhood professionals here. It is so inspiring to see the importance placed on the voice of early educators’ lived experiences and the process of moving the field forward.”
Schmock is a University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Early Childhood Education Policy graduate student who focuses on the adults who support young children, particularly early educators. Schmock’s perspective is rooted in her own experiences and in the research and science supporting the need for high-quality, equitable early childhood relationships and environments. Schmock has worked as an educator in infant, toddler and preschool classrooms, as a director of a group child care program, as a reflective practice leader for ECE educators, and, in her newest role, as an ECE Workforce Engagement Specialist for the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association. Her internship with Strategies is an opportunity to further her knowledge of how policy can support the early childhood workforce and, in turn, support young children and their families.