Her Bold Move: An Internship Stipend

I had the tremendous privilege of being a summer fellow for Her Bold Move, an opportunity for which I received an Internship Stipend from Sigma Tau Delta.

Her Bold Move is a Political Action Committee (PAC) dedicated to supporting progressive women candidates with their campaigns in all levels of government across the US. Her Bold Move recognizes the wide gap in gender representation in political positions and the barriers to entry and active participation in government that many women experience. In fact, women comprise only 27% of US Representatives. The primary goal of Her Bold Move is to aid strong women leaders in shattering glass ceilings and to elect women to seats that have historically only been held by men. While our country has made important strides in the inclusion of women in government, we still have a long way to go; Her Bold Move is putting directives into action to address the strides that still need to be taken. The organization supports progressive women political candidates through field work and digital organizing, financial aid and endorsements, ad creation and distribution, phone and text banking, and a National Fellowship Program, which I was included in for the summer 2023 term.

The Her Bold Move Future Leaders Fellowship is an opportunity for college-age women to gain hands-on experience with political action and processes, campaigning, and fundraising through a series of synchronous meetings and asynchronous assignments. Fellows hear from and engage in discussion with guest speakers from various disciplines while asynchronously working on an individual creative fundraising project and a research project. Additionally, fellows gain communication and advocacy skills through phone banking and discussion sessions.

My personal experience with the Her Bold Move Fellowship was enriched by personal growth achieved by study in an area I am not explicitly well-versed in. As an English and Education major, I have traditionally spent time studying pedagogy and cultural voices rather than the bigger picture of policy and political representation. Being engaged in this fellowship has allowed me to use intersectionality to think about the entanglement of diverse fields. These skills will contribute to my graduate program of study by encouraging me to think about the opportunities for real-world application of the different theories; developing these skills has encouraged me to learn more about advocacy work in careers related to literature and education. I now consider the “how” of multiple situations once the “why” has been answered.

The funding I received from Sigma Tau Delta contributed directly to my immersion and success within this fellowship. The funds I received allowed me to pay for living expenses such as rent, groceries, and gas in order to dedicate more time and effort to learning and contributing to this fellowship.

I am grateful to Sigma Tau Delta for this award, which allowed me to venture outside my comfort zone in order to experience and learn much more than I could have anticipated. This experience has played a pivotal role in my personal and professional development, and I look forward to engaging in issues of advocacy in the future, extending from and beyond those witnessed by women in government.

Megan Lolley
Internship Stipend Recipient, Summer 2023
Eta Chi Chapter
University of Idaho, ID

Internship Stipend

Sigma Tau Delta offers funding for current undergraduate and graduate student members accepting internships for which their expenses exceed what they will be paid. Sigma Tau Delta will not cover expenses related to tuition and/or student fees. The Internship Stipend is a competitive program providing a limited number of stipends of up to $1,500 each.

The internship must involve working for an “organization” while being directed by a supervisor/mentor within that organization, and the intern’s duties must be consistent with the applicant’s level of education, area of study, and career goals. Financial need will be taken into consideration in addition to internship length. Applicants are responsible for obtaining and providing verification of the internship. Check out BestColleges’ Ultimate Guide to Internships for advice in finding and applying for internships.

The internship stipend does not apply to activities that are part of a student’s pre-professional degree requirements, such as student teaching or capstone internships in journalism/technical writing, and cannot be used to supplement a graduate assistantship. Students are eligible for the internship stipend award one time per internship.