Pell Center Hosts Inaugural Summer Institute of Politics

On July 14, twenty high school students from across the country arrived on Salve Regina’s campus in Newport Rhode Island to attend the Pell Center’s Summer Institute of Politics.  The weeklong residential program offered students the opportunity to grapple with various global and political challenges of our day while developing their leadership skills.  It also gave students a glimpse of life on a college campus as they worked closely with Salve Regina undergraduate students who served as peer mentors and facilitators throughout the week.

The week in Newport featured off-site visits to local sites including Touro Synagogue and Fort Adams that gave students historical context for the modern issues they explored throughout the program.  Students built on simulations and workshops from speakers that covered topics from effective communication, counterterrorism, America’s political system, stakeholder engagement strategies and more to research an issue of their choosing and and present their own policy pitch to a panel at the end of the week.  

Jay Sullivan, an award-winning author and communications consultant, attended the student policy pitches as a panelist.  He said, “[the students] were asked to prepare a two-minute presentation as if they were on the staff member to a U.S. Senator, and then present their idea and take questions.” Reflecting on the student presentations, he said, “what stood out was the deep connection between a fearless expression of passion and the executive presence of the speakers. It was all the more remarkable because the presenters were all rising high school juniors and seniors.”

Pell Center Associate Director Katie Sonder led several sessions throughout the week, including a workshop that examined the nuances of American political polarization.  She said, “I was genuinely impressed by the student’s dedication to navigating complex political issues during the Summer Institute of Politics. They recognized the nuance of issues like abortion, climate change, and prison reform, for example, without letting it deter them from brainstorming potential political solutions.”  She added, “their commitment to engaging with difficult topics and their willingness to understand the other side’s perspective was both inspiring and indicative of their potential as future leaders.”

Salve Regina student Renee Dube ’25 served as a peer mentor and drew from her experiences as a history and secondary education major to help develop and lead sessions for students throughout the week.  She said, “it was an amazing experience to watch students work with excitement on a project I helped design.  Seeing the curiosity and growth in each student was extremely rewarding and helped me gain confidence as an educator.”

Participating students shared reflections on the week, and many students made note of how the program challenged various assumptions they had going in, while others reflected on the confidence the program instilled in them:

“I used to think politics were extremely divided. Now, I think we share more ideals than I would have thought.”

“I used to think that I couldn’t do things that I wasn’t confident in. Now I think that if I push myself, I can do whatever I put my mind to.”

“I used to think there weren’t many other people engaged like me in my age group, but I’ve met so many people like me through this experience.”