Elise Britton went to Capitol Hill to learn about government. By the end of the summer, she understood much more clearly how much government depends on people talking to one another.

Britton, a political science major with minors in Social Justice Advocacy and Public Policy and Civic Engagement, spent the summer working in the Washington, D.C., office of U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown as a 2026 IDEA Summer Democracy Fellow.

Much of what she learned came through the everyday work of a congressional office.

One day, while legislative staff was tied up in meetings, a group of Ohio constituents walked into the office. Constituent correspondence was one of Britton’s main responsibilities, so she spoke with the group, listened to the issues they wanted to raise, and took detailed notes for the appropriate staff member. Partway through the conversation, the office’s chief of staff joined them.

For Britton, the experience made the work feel real.

“Seeing the constituents leave feeling heard and knowing that I had played a role in making sure their concerns reached the people who could act on them made me realize that even as an intern, I was contributing to the office’s responsibility to our constituents,” she said.

Seeing representation from the other side

Working inside a congressional office also changed how Britton thought about the people who contact their representatives.

Some constituents called every week. Others shared deeply personal experiences. Some arrived prepared with detailed information about legislation they wanted the office to consider.

She began to see how much effort people put into making their voices heard.

“Seeing that level of dedication and vulnerability made me value constituent engagement and reinforced how important it is for congressional offices to genuinely listen to these constituents,” Britton said.

That experience is closely connected to a question at the center of IDEA’s work: what should the relationship between citizens and their representatives actually look like?

For Britton, the answer became less abstract over the course of the summer. Representation was not only about votes, hearings, or speeches on the House floor. Sometimes it meant answering a phone call, listening carefully, or making sure someone’s concern reached the right person.

Turning questions into policy research

The summer also gave Britton space to pursue her own questions.

She became interested in the barriers Black women can face when seeking treatment for substance use disorder and chose the issue for her internship capstone project.

Britton researched those barriers and examined how an existing demonstration grant could potentially be renewed and adapted to better address them.

The project gave her another view of policymaking: identifying a problem is only the beginning. Turning that concern into policy requires research, evidence, and an understanding of where change might actually be possible.

Learning how Washington works beyond Congress

Britton also came away with a broader understanding of who shapes public policy.

Before the fellowship, she said she had not fully appreciated the influence that advocacy organizations, lobbying groups, think tanks, and community organizations can have on the issues Congress considers.

“Seeing that process firsthand helped me understand that effective policymaking does not happen solely within congressional offices,” she said. “It requires collaboration between elected officials, advocacy organizations, and the communities they represent.”

The fellowship pushed Britton personally, too. She arrived in Washington hoping to become more comfortable with networking. Informational interviews organized through the fellowship gave her a reason to reach out to people she might not otherwise have approached.

By the end of the summer, networking felt less like an exercise and more like a conversation: introduce yourself, ask a thoughtful question, and listen.

What she took home

When Britton reflects on the summer now, she does not reduce it to one hearing, one office, or one piece of legislation.

Her takeaway is broader, and simpler.

“My summer in Washington taught me that government is not something that happens only on Capitol Hill—it’s built through everyday conversations, grassroots organizing, and people who choose to listen, serve, and make their voices heard.”

By the end of the summer, Elise saw government less as a distant institution and more as something built through conversations between people and the offices that represent them.