"There was nothing I could have done this summer that would have allowed me to make New Haven my home the way this Fellowship did. It was an enriching experience, and I would heartily recommend it to anyone."

"In addition to technical skills, this internship has exposed me to community organizing and some very impressive local community leaders who are on the front lines, fighting to preserve the integrity of their neighborhoods."

"This summer as a President's Public Service Fellow has been absolutely wonderful. Stressful, yes. Tiring, yes. Challenging, yes. I have really enjoyed myself, learned a lot, and figured out that I have a lot more that I want to learn."

"I have found this fellowship very rewarding. It has allowed me to focus my research for my senior project in a way I had not expected. It has also given me insights into city politics that I had lacked. My goal is to create a reproducible model for successful community revitalization. To that end this fellowship has been invaluable."

"My view of the weekly fellowship meetings changed from a weekly responsibility to an anticipated fun event that I actually would come home inspired by a new story or situation another fellow was involved with. Each week I would see New Haven and community involvement through new eyes. The diversity in background and interest complemented the energy and passion possessed by most of the fellows. It was wonderful to be part of a group who possessed qualities of passion, hope, integrity, and honesty."

"One of its great values has been to give me the practical skills that I'd never gotten in my courses."

"My reason for staying in New Haven over the summer was to get to know the city and the people who I was working with to a degree which I felt was impossible during the semester, when Yale was unavoidably my only frame of reference. I wanted to spend time in communities that were unfamiliar to me, and to see for myself what kinds of problems they faced and what kinds of solutions might be offered. By driving around every day, I got know New Haven street by street, and began to feel safe and welcome in neighborhoods that I had never seen before the summer. I have never had a more challenging or rewarding experience in my life."

"My view of the city has changed a lot over the course of the summer. Neighborhoods that I never would have ventured into before have become familiar places where I work, know people, and enjoy giving to."

"In retrospect, this summer was the first time in my life when work was my first priority. In part, this was because of the long hours. But this was more the consequence of the obvious positive effects of the kids in the camp and the contagious dedication of some of my co-workers. This is also attributable to the management style of my supervisor, who gave me the freedom to implement new ideas and the power to make correction where I saw fit."

"One of the most rewarding aspects of the President's Fellowship has been the chance to meet with and learn from other Yale students, both graduates and undergraduates. The most interesting discussions we had concerned 'town-gown' issues, and how ethnic and racial identity figures into the relationship between Yale students and other members of the local community."

Please contact Ricardo Sandoval (ricardo.sandoval@yale.edu) if you have questions.