Taking a Gettysburg College Education to Capitol Hill
By Kyle Hammerness, Features Editor
Giulia DiGuglielmo ’18 (Photo provided)
Growing up in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Giulia DiGuglielmo ’18 always had an interest in history. This developed into an interest in politics, and when she came to Get Acquainted Day, the Eisenhower Institute immediately drew her attention.
DiGuglielmo said, “After that weekend, I had chosen Gettysburg because I had really loved how unique the Eisenhower Institute was, and that was not something that other schools had.”
DiGuglielmo said that on her third day at Gettysburg, she walked into the Eisenhower Institute to introduce herself. Later that semester, she applied for the Inside Politics program, but she was not accepted. Despite this setback she joined the Eisenhower Institute as an office assistant, and the next semester she reapplied and was accepted into Inside Politics. During her sophomore year, she participated in Women and Leadership before joining Susan Eisenhower’s Strategy & Leadership in Transformational Times her junior year.
Her favorite program was the Undergraduate Fellowship. She explained, “We went to London to study the effects of high-speed rail. The whole year was transportation. Policy, planes, trains, and automobiles, so to speak. We arranged meetings with members of Parliament, we got to sit in on a transportation hearing in Parliament, and we met with other stakeholders and groups to talk about their rail system.”
DiGuglielmo highlighted that even if someone does not get into the program their first try, they should apply in the future.
Her classes in political science also helped her in her career in the House of Representatives. DiGuglielmo said, “I took five classes with Professor Bruce Larson. His classes were always so engaging, thoughtful, and dialogue based. [His class on Congress] was fabulous, and I find myself thinking on that class when I›m writing memos, and it shaped a lot of how I think.”
After graduation DiGuglielmo joined Congressman Hal Rogers’s staff and became legislative correspondent. She drafted the Congressman’s communications and assisted with press clips. DiGuglielmo said, “It was cool to have the exposure to that type of work. However, by the end of that year, I was itching to be promoted.”
She put out inquiries for policy jobs, and heard back from Congressman Darrell Issa’s Chief of Staff. DiGuglielmo said, “I stayed in contact with her because I had interned for [Congressman Issa] while at Gettysburg. She said that he was coming back to the Hill and asked if I was interested in joining his staff as a legislative assistant.”
In this role, DiGuglielmo has gained a policy portfolio covering issues ranging from natural resources, energy, agriculture, health care, education and labor, and the Science, Space and Technology Committee. She explained, “my job is to know those issues and generally understand them. You know, I would love to say I’m an expert on every single thing that I do but when you have 14 different areas of policy in your sandbox, that›s close to impossible.”
She continued, “I review legislation that’s coming to the floor or coming to committee. When the Congressman has an idea or if I have an idea that he likes, I draft and prepare legislation. The last thing I do is meet with constituents and stakeholders to hear their inputs, you know what matters to them, which oftentimes will lead to legislation or [Congressman Issa] having thoughts about things we’re voting on.”
Gettysburg College had a major impact on DiGuglielmo and her journey to Capitol Hill. Since graduation she said she has loved her experience working in Congress and especially with Congressman Issa. She said, “It is fast paced. It is awesome. He is a fantastic boss, and I never want to leave.”
This article originally appeared on page 19 of the March 2023 edition of the Gettysburgian’s magazine.
