Michael Mireles: IDEA's Public Policy Fellowship

I D E A ’ S P U B L I C P O L I C Y F E L L O W S H I P Michael Mireles

Michael Mireles can remember a time when he didn’t think about college. His childhood was spent along the arid Texas-Mexico border with his grandparents, who were both migrant workers. Life as a migrant family was far from easy. Many of his peers chose to forgo their education in order to help their families make ends meet.

MIRELES’ LIFE COULD HAVE EASILY FOLLOWED THAT PATH. Cities in both the Upper and Lower Rio Grande Valley are ranked among the least educated in the United States with some of the lowest numbers of high school degree holders. According to Teach for America, for every 100 students entering a public school classroom in the Rio Grande Valley, only 12 will receive a college degree within six years of graduation.

Mireles, a sophomore at Brown University, spent his summer in Austin as an IDEA Policy Fellow working in Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa’s office. 

Raised by grandparents who believed that a great education was the key to breaking barriers and enjoying lifelong success, they began searching for a strong college-bound education. They found IDEA Quest in Edinburg, Texas, and enrolled him for his seventh grade year.

“My grandparents liked that IDEA’s focus was on success in college and beyond,” he says. “A lot ofemphasis goes toward college readiness and widening students’ horizons when it comes to college and career options. I think my grandparents really appreciated that and felt that was the best place for me to be.” Mireles remembers the drastic jump to IDEA’s culture, as the school made no qualms about what it expects from students. “There is no student attending IDEA that is not expected to succeed. There’s no doubt about it. When you’re enrolled at IDEA, you are holding yourself accountable and have an entire campus full of teachers, administrators and staff who are unwilling to let you settle for less than they know you are capable of,” he says.      Mireles says IDEA was the first place that made him seriously consider a college education and begin to consider schools that were once beyond his wildest dreams.

“The more I looked at colleges, the more I was drawn to Brown University’s open curriculum and that’s when I decided that I wanted to go to school there,” says Mireles.

As a high school student, Mireles volunteered at a humanitarian respite center and spoke with asylum seekers in detention camps. Their stories of survival moved him and, though the public debate on immigration raged on, Mireles says he had no interest in politics.

“I was very cognizant about what was happening along the border because of my experiences volunteering with asylum-seekers,” he says. “It really changed my perspective about the injustices that occur involving immigration policies. It seemed unfair, but I really didn’t think about ways to change how things were.” Mireles realized his dream and was accepted to Brown University’s Class of 2021. As a development studies major, Mireles was taking courses in social economics and realized that he had a growing desire to help others and help make the world a little better.  

Beaming with pride on College Signing Day, Mireles and his grandmother speak to IDEA CEO and Co-founder Tom Torkelson. 

“The reason I was never attracted to politics was because I felt that it was mostly unfair and only benefits certain groups of people,” he says. “By the end of my sophomore year at Brown, I realized there were a lot of issues I wanted to help change and realized the only way to do that was to work on policy.”

After the passing of Texas House Bill 3 (HB3) in June, legislators sprang into action to share the news about the new law with their constituents. With offices short-staffed over the summer, many legislators relied on summer interns to assist with legislative analysis, including members of IDEA’s Policy Fellowship Program, which allows alumni to spend a summer interning as a fellow with policy makers in the Texas Legislature.

Mireles’ newfound interest in policy grew even more when he learned about IDEA’s Policy Fellowship program. It was exactly the kind of opportunity he was looking for — the ability to gain hands-on experience in public policy, a position to advocate for causes he believed in, and the chance to return to Texas for the summer.

“I first heard about the policy fellowship when my high school counselor posted it on Facebook,” he says. “It’s just another example of how IDEA is working to give every student opportunities beyond high school. I applied, and the program solidified my newfound desire to go into politics.”

After applying, Mireles spent the next three months working with program directors to finalize a resume and cover letters with the intent to gain employment in legislative offices over the summer. Based on the applicant’s skills and background, the program does its best to place policy fellows with a specific legislator or state organization.

“I was very determined to get into Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa’s office because he represents my home district in the Rio Grande Valley,” says Mireles. “The border presents a lot of unique opportunities for policy work in regard to immigration and education.”

Mireles earned an internship with Senator Hinojosa’s office and joined other policy fellows in Austin, where each is provided with housing and a stipend that allows them to remain in the city throughout the summer.

“One of the good things about the fellowship is that the people are all very supportive and try to make sure that every intern has a meaningful work experience,” he says. “In addition to office tasks, we must complete a major capstone project, which allows us to work closely with colleagues in addition to constituents. One of the projects I worked on was what House Bill 3 (HB3) was going to look like for school districts in the Rio Grande Valley.”

Mireles was tasked with studying HB3 and tracking how it was going to affect various school districts in the Rio Grande Valley for Senator Hinojosa. His summary on HB3 allowed Mireles to become familiar with how school districts planned to appropriate funding as well as learn more about the educational and financial needs of residents.

“As a college intern, being able to do work that is impactful, informative and helping shape public policy is like a dream come true,” he says. “After the fellowship, my desire to continue working to foster change led me to apply with the Public Department of Health in Rhode Island, and Senator Hinojosa gave me a good letter of recommendation, so I am sure that IDEA’s policy fellowship has opened new doors for my future.”

Mireles says the fellowship program was a pivotal point in both his career and his education, and now he aspires to apply to Harvard Law School’s Junior Deferral program. The program allows admitted students to explore other career paths for a minimum of two years after graduating college before returning to Harvard Law and earning their law degree. Mireles says he intends to study either immigration law or civil rights at Harvard and hopes to inspire others to be the change they want to see in the world.

“The biggest thing this experience has taught me is that we all believe in something, and we should use our voice to advocate for the things we feel most passionate about,” he says. “It is up to each of us to help create the kind of world we want to live in.” ♦

Above: Mireles pictured at his high school graduation from IDEA Quest in May 2018. Below: Mireles is passionate about social justice and advocacy and plans to apply to Harvard Law School’s Junior Deferral Program. 