POLS Major is Cal Poly’s 2017 Panetta Representative

Political Science junior, Maryam Quasto, has been accepted into the 2017 Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program. She will join representatives from other CSU campuses for two weeks of training on the Monterey Bay campus in August, followed by 11 weeks in Washington, D.C. The representatives will work full time in the office of a congressional representative. 

Political Science junior, Maryam Quasto, has been accepted into the 2017 Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program. She will join representatives from other CSU campuses for two weeks of training on the Monterey Bay campus in August, followed by 11 weeks in Washington, D.C. The representatives will work full time in the office of a congressional representative.

Quasto successfully advanced through the campus interview process and was selected for nomination by President Armstrong. After meeting with Mrs. Panetta and other institute representatives, Quasto was accepted as the Cal Poly representative. 

The junior, who works part time in the university’s donor relations department, is among 26 students from around the Golden State taking part in the program.

“I look forward to gaining a new perspective on what it is like to actually work in an international hub like Washington, D.C., as well as to further my understanding of the American political system,” said Quasto. She hopes to pursue a career in international law and work as a diplomat or U.S. ambassador.

“I think that being in the heart of our nation will provide an amazing Learn by Doing experience, and I am excited to further my education and grow from this opportunity.”

The Panetta Institute awards scholarships to students from each of the 23 California State University campuses, along with one each from Dominican University of California, Saint Mary’s College of California and Santa Clara University.

The program, now in its 19th year, is open to all academic majors. It is recognized as one of the best of its kind because of the rigorous training it provides and because the Panetta Institute scholarship covers all student costs — offering an equal opportunity for all qualified candidates. Quasto is the 17th Cal Poly student to participate in the program since 2001. She emigrated with her family from Baghdad, Iraq, to Silicon Valley when she was five.