Aldo Leopold Charter School (ALCS) alumna Ajalaa Claussen was selected to serve as an intern for U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) this summer in Washington, D.C. Claussen just completed her junior year at University of Southern California and is majoring in political science and Spanish. She is interested in either a career in politics or becoming a civil rights attorney.

Claussen became inspired to pursue a career in politics as a high school sophomore and junior following school field trips to the New Mexico Roundhouse in 2018 and 2019. There she gained practical experience in how a bill becomes a law and the deep debates involved in the process. Working for Rep. Vasquez this summer, Claussen looks forward to witnessing this process unfold on a national level and supporting Vasquez’s efforts to protect the Gila River, one of the nation’s last free-flowing waterways. She says, “Having grown up backpacking along the Gila River, witnessing the vital role of this riparian habitat, it will be an honor to stand by Rep. Vasquez supporting the river’s preservation. It will also be exciting to be in D.C. and dive into the issues that concern New Mexicans.”