The NCAA News - News & Features

Arrangement benefits D.C. office staff, interns

After the office opened, Doris L. Dixon, NCAA director of federal relations, contacted area colleges and universities to recruit volunteer help with substantive and clerical work.

The response was so good that Dixon was able to interview and select student help. Five students have completed their work at the office and one has been selected for the summer, Dixon said.

The two interns who assisted the NCAA federal relations staff during the spring semester demonstrated that the program can be a boon to both the Association and the students.

Beth Stemmler, a third-year law student and assistant women's soccer coach at Georgetown University, spent three to four hours three days a week plus one full day weekly from January through April at the NCAA satellite office.

Stemmler said she learned of the program through the Georgetown athletics department and thought it would provide a good place to pursue her interest in law and sports. She worked with Daniel A. Nestel, NCAA federal relations assistant, tracking and compiling reports on state legislation.

"It was a good introduction to a lot of the issues I will deal with as a lawyer," she said. With her law degree in hand, Stemmler now is studying for the bar.

Eric L. O'Brien, also a Georgetown student, was an academic and athletics all-American in cross country and a 1996 GTE Scholar-Athlete. He completed work on a bachelor's degree in government this spring and recently qualified for the Olympic trials this month in Atlanta. He plans to return to Georgetown in the fall to get an additional degree in sociology.

When O'Brien saw the notice in the athletics department about the internship program, he saw an internship as a way to gain valuable experience in the areas in which he hopes to work -- governmental relations and sports.

O'Brien worked with Dixon on Title IX issues. He took file cabinets of information accumulated on the topic at the Washington office and compiled it so that it was easily accessible by the Washington staff.

"He did extensive documentation and established a library on Title IX for our office," Dixon said. "They (the interns) spend 20 hours a week here and are full-time students at the same time. They were recommended by the athletics department and they were very good."