Real-world experience in the nation’s capital 

By Kaylen Ayres '25

The Lutheran College Washington Semester program allows students to gain valuable experience through internships in Washington, D.C. This fall semester, a record 15 Roanoke College students are participating in the program.  

“This is the largest and strongest group of students that I’ve ever sent to the Washington Semester Program,” said Dr. Todd Peppers, Henry H. and Trudye H. Fowler Professor of Public Affairs, and LCWS coordinator for Roanoke College. “Given the ongoing pandemic, I was concerned that we would not be able to find good internships for the students. Not only did the students find great internship opportunities, but most of these internships are in-person.”   

Three of the 15 students — Juliana Pappavasiliou ’22, Rachel Sirbaugh ’23 and Hunter Meyer ’23 — are interning at the U.S. Marshals Service, a federal law enforcement agency within the U.S. Department of Justice.  

Pappavasiliou is a criminal justice major and psychology minor who is concentrating in crime, deviance and social control. A member of the Alpha Phi Sigma criminal justice honor society, she spends most of her days attending court hearings, observing the operations of U.S. marshals and assisting with administrative tasks.  

Pappavasiliou wants a career in federal law enforcement and has been interested in the U.S. Marshals Service for a while.   

“This internship has allowed me to make meaningful connections that I would not have otherwise made and has allowed me to see firsthand the job that I want,” she said.   

Sirbaugh is a criminal justice and sociology double major. In her Marshals Service internship, she assembles literary reviews by taking topics in question and researching as much information as possible about them. Her research is then used by different divisions within the U.S. Marshals Service.  

“I hope to become a law enforcement officer for the federal government,” said Sirbaugh, a member of Roanoke College’s Academic Integrity Council; Alpha Kappa Delta, a sociology honor society; Alpha Phi Sigma; and the Maroons softball team.  

“This experience thus far has allowed me to see the other side of what I want to pursue as a career,” Sirbaugh said. 

Meyer is a criminal justice major with a concentration in legal studies. In his internship, Meyer rotates from the general operations room, prisoner communications, warrants, and the Marshals Service. Meyer sees the implement of marshals in the courtroom, in their administrative work, and in their work with prisoners in the federal system.

The opportunity "has solidified my desire to go into federal law enforcement," Meyer said. "I know that the training for U.S. Marshals is rigorous, and it still does not turn me away from what they do. [Lutheran College Washington Semester] is an opportunity for anyone who wants to work in the capital area that they should not pass up."

Other Roanoke College students participating in the Lutheran College Washington Semester program this fall include:  

• Marcella Allison ’22, a history and theatre double major with a legal studies concentration, is interning at FreedomWorks. Allison is a research fellow for the Fine Arts Department and a member of Phi Alpha Theta history honor society and Alpha Psi Omega theatre honor society. She also is the recipient of the College’s R. Dan Richardson Award. 
• Bennet Franz ’22, a public health major and biology minor, is interning at the National Hispanic Medical Association. Franz is also a member of the College’s Honors Program.  
• Izzy Mack ’22, a political science major with a concentration in legal studies, is interning for Brett Parson Consulting. Mack also is a member of the Maroons women’s swim team.  
• Lydia Turner-Little ’22, a sociology major with a minor in religious studies and concentrations in legal studies, and gender and women’s studies, is interning for the DC Center for the LGBT Community.  
• Owen Collander ’23, a history major with a concentration in public history, is interning at the Woodrow Wilson House, the historic residence of the 28th president of the United States. Collander is a member of German Club and Historical Society, and serves as a campus tour guide.  
• Greg Fisher ’23, a business administration and philosophy double major, is interning at the Arlington Chamber of Commerce. Fisher is the vice president of the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honor society, a member of the Maroons men’s lacrosse team, a building operations assistant at the Colket Center and a member of the Center for Learning and Entrepreneurial Innovation (CLEI).  
• Janae Henry ’23, a criminal justice major and psychology minor, is interning for Offender Aid and Restoration. Henry is a member of the Maroons softball team.  
• Tyler “Heath” Hubbard ’23, a political science major, is interning at the Congressional Management Foundation.  
• Ivey Kline ’23, a history major, is interning at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. Kline also is a research assistant on campus and vice president of the Historical Society.  
• Jonnel Lewis ’23, a communications major with a concentration in legal studies, is interning at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Lewis is chapter president of the National Society of Leadership and Success, and a member of Lambda Pi Eta communication studies honor society and Tangles club.  
• Kinsey Nguyen ’23 — who is majoring in criminal justice, with a concentration in legal studies, and double minoring in American politics and history — is interning at Girls on the Run. Nguyen is a member of Black Student Alliance, Hispanic Organization for Leadership and Achievement, Tangles and Shades of Maroon. She also is in Alpha Lambda Delta honor society, Omicron Delta Kappa, Alpha Alpha Alpha first-generation student honor society, Alpha Phi Sigma and the National Society for Leadership and Success.  
• Kaitlin Shaul ’23, a history and French double major, is interning at FreedomWorks, a nonprofit organization.