King of the Hill: Joel Cohen '10

Joel Cohen ’10 started his career on Capitol Hill working for the office of Senator Ben Cardin.  Currently, Joel works on the Democratic Staff for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where Senator Cardin is a ranking member. Joel reflects on his time at BT, his path to public service, and his guidance to future Beth Tfiloh alums.

 

JC: Speaking to the students who visited Capitol Hill during the AIPAC conference was interesting. While I was a student at BT I never participated in the annual trip to AIPAC and I was always upset with myself that I missed a prime opportunity to meet with our elected officials. The students who visited Washington during the conference came prepared to speak about an issue that is extremely important to them, and their desire to not settle for the generic answers from legislative staff was admirable, as well as their demonstrated interest in how they could get more involved with politics themselves. It was great to see that the teachers at BT are continuing to encourage students to get active on issues important to the Jewish community and it seemed the majority of the students are interested in better understanding developing current events which have a major impact on their lives. I also had the chance to also ask them some questions, and it was great to hear that many aspects of the school are the same.

JC: My Jewish education has had a major impact on who I am today. Professionally, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work for someone who has been a force in the Baltimore Jewish community for decades. When I initially started my job search I knew I would only be comfortable working in an office on Capitol Hill that shared my political views ; luckily I was able to find a member of Congress with whom I was fairly familiar and who fit the mold perfectly. Working for Senator Cardin has been an incredible experience and I have definitely benefited from having a strong background in Jewish education on multiple occasions. Personally, I know my Jewish education has helped me tremendously in continuing to make contacts and new friends after moving to a new city. DC may only be an hour away from Baltimore but the majority of the friends I made in college ended up moving to New York City or Los Angeles for work, so it's been great to be able to seamlessly fit into the Jewish community here, reconnect with old friends, and make new ones who have helped provide me with a strong sense of community in my new home. 

JC: I have been very lucky to get to where I am today. Without having had the opportunity to take a few AP exams at the end of my senior year at BT I'm not sure I would be where I am now. Because of those extra credits going into college, I was able to finish my classes a semester early and take advantage of an internship in Senator Cardin's legislative office in DC. While there, the pieces really fell into place perfectly, as I always seemed to be in the right place at the right time. That being said, I know that continuing to work hard and taking advantage of opportunities put in front of me is the only way to ensure that I'll keep progressing in my profession. Right now I'm focused on my current work on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but always searching for new challenges. 

JC: My best advice to BT students who are interested in public service is to get active now. Nothing in this field is presented to you on a silver platter. The only way to get anywhere in this field is by continuing to seek out information and opportunities on topics that are important to you. I used the time during my senior internship and the summer before heading off to college to find out what sections of politics really interested me; going into school it helped me better map out a clear path of what I wanted to do going forward. Students also need to make sure their voices are heard--this coming election is going to be monumental for the future of our country and if they want to ensure they have a say in the matter, they need to get out and find the candidate who best represents their voice.