Before sunrise on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018, forty excited students and four chaperones embarked on a four-day tour of Washington, D.C., and the surrounding areas to visit law schools and network with congressional officials, senators, and U.S. ambassadors.

The History and Political Science department’s annual trip, formally known as “Career Pathways to Washington, D.C.,” was led by professor Preston Foster. Assisting him were professor Amanda Ringer, Anton Dormer (class of 2018 alumnus), and new faculty member and Pre-Law program coordinator Marcya Burden.

Oakwood senior Ross Parkinson recounted that “The Political Science Department’s trip to Washington exposed me to the various opportunities in areas such as law, public policy, and government.” Along the tour, some of the students were offered internships, law school admission, and job opportunities. They took photos with senators and congressmen.

The group also met with Congressman Eric Swalwell, senior policy researchers at the Brookings Institution, recruiters at Howard University Law School, American University School of Public Affairs, Deloitte (international consultants, the DC Public Defender’s Office), and former UN Ambassador Mendelson of the Heinz School at Carnegie Mellon.

Students met Oakwood alumni on every step of the tour. The alumni showed the students where they can be in their future careers. Foster, Political Science and Public Policy coordinator, shared, “A recent OU graduate hosted us at each law school, public policy school, government institution, and consulting firm we visited. They are building pipelines for our students.”

As ambassadors wherever they went, the History and Political Science students were dubbed “The God Squad” by some D.C. locals during their tour. Foster said, “Top schools and think tanks, like the Brookings Institution, know of and highly value Oakwood University as a source of highly-competitive candidates for graduate schools or internships.”

In addition to learning about future opportunities, meeting with thought and government leaders, and making an impact upon those they met, this was also the first class from Oakwood University to attend an oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Burden said, “This trip to Washington, D.C., was an opportunity of a lifetime. Relationships were fostered between many influential people in the D.C. area. The presence of God was felt during our entire trip. And we made history!”

She added, “This new tradition is bearing fruit for Oakwood’s Public Policy and Pre-Law students and is, more importantly, placing Oakwood graduates in the halls of power to advance the Kingdom of God.”

— Dawnette Chambers is an assistant professor at Oakwood University.

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