CAC had the pleasure of welcoming four interns to the team this summer and sharing with them our method of understanding the progressive promise of the text, history, and values of the U.S. Constitution. Below you’ll find their reflections on their time with CAC, what they’ve learned, and what they will take with them as they move forward in their careers.

Sarah Clements
Georgetown University Law Center 2025

As someone who came from political advocacy spaces before law school, I engaged with various “theories of change.” Movements often use this term to describe the goals, strategies, and mechanisms that ought to be used in order to incite social and political change. What tools need to be used, who needs to be at the table, what language is most persuasive for this audience? Upon starting law school, it became evident that attorneys create similar methodologies to approach their desired outcomes, whether in the realm of public policy, impact litigation, or scholarship. It has been awe-inspiring to spend my summer at CAC with a team that is laser-focused on a powerful and dynamic legal theory of change: fulfilling the progressive promise of the Constitution’s text and history.

When CAC talks about the importance of considering the whole Constitution and of engaging a comprehensive understanding of constitutional history, we are quite literally holding accountable the most powerful figures in our profession. All too often, judges and attorneys claim to articulate the “text and history” of the Constitution, when in reality they present a narrow, cherry-picked, skewed vision of the past that erases crucial voices and perspectives. Yet we know that the ideals and values written into our founding charter and fought for by generations of activists, scholars, movement leaders, and lawyers call on us to realize a more equitable, safe, and just future. Indeed, so much of CAC’s work—located in the lines of brilliant amicus briefs to the Supreme Court and courts of appeals across the country—is about righting the narrative of history and constructing a collective constitutional memory that ensures every person in the United States feels seen and included.

My time at CAC has been full of intriguing projects and unparalleled mentorship, and I could not imagine a better experience for my first foray into the legal profession. The work done here has shown me that it is possible, and indeed essential, for progressive lawyers to advocate with the Constitution as our value-driven North Star. To read the Constitution honestly is to see its promise of freedom, equality, and liberty for all, to vindicate the rights and dignity of every person, and to reconcile past harms by committing to future liberation. Above all, it has given me much-needed hope that we can see through this legal theory of change, as well as the tools to help us get there.

Remington Hill
Yale Law School 2025

I cannot speak highly enough about my summer at CAC! When I started the summer, I had heard countless positive internship stories from upperclassmen that spent their 1L summers at CAC, but I didn’t know just how much of a treat I was in for. I’ve worked on a wide variety of issues this summer, some of which I had virtually no familiarity with before the summer began, and I learned something every day. I especially appreciated CAC’s efforts to ensure that I spent some time working on issues I’d done some research on in law school. I am a better legal researcher and writer after these ten weeks, and that’s in no small part thanks to all of the time CAC attorneys spent reviewing my work and providing detailed feedback. At every turn, my colleagues made themselves available for questions, and provided enthusiastic encouragement for which I will always be grateful.

After (another) deeply troubling Supreme Court term, it’s easy to imagine that appellate advocates might be discouraged, but the team at CAC remains steadfast in their commitment to a progressive understanding of the Constitution. That commitment has been thoroughly inspiring. After a year of law school, it feels like every issue is as important as the next, and working at CAC has allowed me to imagine a legal career that enables me to work on the vast array of issues that call me, and to enjoy doing so. I am so grateful for these ten weeks, and look forward to staying in touch with everyone I met this summer for years to come.

Madison Irene
Stanford Law School 2024

I could not have asked for a better or more fulfilling summer internship experience than working at CAC. All the CAC staff members incredibly welcoming and supportive and it’s very clear that everyone puts in a lot of intentional thought and effort to creating a substantive and engaging internship experience.

Not only did I get to learn from some incredible appellate litigators, but I was able to work on critical progressive legal issues. These included civil forfeiture rights, reproductive justice, and separation of powers. I had my legal research featured in a Supreme Court amicus brief, which is a sentence I never in my life thought I would be able to write. Not only have I seen my legal research and writing skills grow immensely, but I know that I have met some life-long mentors whom I will continue to be able to call on for advice.

Finally, I found incredibly valuable all of the ‘brown-bag’ lunches and programming that CAC holds. Law school goes by so quickly and as a Latina woman from a low-income background I have often felt like valuable information about things like clerkships, fellowships, and the legal world are hidden in places out of reach for me. These brown-bag lunches were so informative and going into my 3L year really helped me in thinking about my future.

Zaakir Tameez
Yale Law School 2024

I loved my time at the Constitutional Accountability Center (CAC). I enjoyed the opportunity to conduct historical research on cutting-edge issues of constitutional law and to work on several amicus curiae briefs being submitted to the U.S. Supreme Court on high-profile cases. I also learned how to look carefully at the text, history, and structure of the Constitution to make serious originalist arguments. And along the way, I gained wonderful friends and mentors from like-minded scholars who are similarly committed to reviving the deeply progressive vision of America’s Founders and Second Founders. Thank you to the wonderful team at CAC for briefly bringing me on board.