A Ball State University alumnus spent part of his summer answering phones for Gov. Mitch Daniels -- and paving his own path toward the big office in Indianapolis.
Andrew Norris, who received his bachelor's degree in political science from Ball State in December of 2004, is one of eight recent Indiana graduates who began their 2005-06 Governor's Fellowships on July 1. The fellowships give young leaders one year to gain firsthand experience in state agencies.
"This is a great opportunity for Andrew to get some other experiences beyond state Senate and campaigning for Gov. Daniels," Jane Jankowski, a spokeswoman for Daniels, said. "He now gets the view from inside the governor's office."
In his first month of the fellowship, Norris has worked the switchboard in the governor's office, handling hundreds of phone calls every day from constituents who have concerns or problems and are seeking the governor's assistance. Norris' responsibility is to find the proper agency to handle the issue and help resolve the problem.
"I am amazed at the number of phone calls the governor receives on a daily basis from people asking for help. Many Hoosiers legitimately need government intervention to assist them, and we work as quickly as possible to address every concern or refer that concern to the proper entity, but we get a lot of calls."
So far, Norris says the most exciting part of the fellowship experience was the opportunity to hear President George W. Bush speak at the Indiana Black Expo kickoff luncheon.
"Unfortunately, I didn't get to actually meet [the president]," Norris said. But he wasn't just along for the ride: "My responsibility that day was to deal with the local media."
Norris has been heavily involved with government -- from the university level to the state level -- for years. After graduating in December of 2004, Norris worked with the legislative session of the Indiana Senate, and while he was a Ball State student, he was the vice president of the College Republicans. Norris' other political experience includes working on the Muncie City Council campaign in 2003, which he said prepared him for and helped him get the Fellowship, as did the professors of Ball State's political science department.
"Working with the College Republicans, meeting those people, I got involved with my first campaign -- the City Council race of 2003. Even though we got beat, it was a good experience. It got me excited about campaigns." ?
Norris had better success last summer, when he helped Daniels with his gubernatorial campaign and gained, for himself, some experience in state government.
Norris hopes that through this fellowship, he will gain a broader perspective of how state government works, but he has realized in the short time he's been working at the governor's office that he has found his niche there.
"As far as a career goes, I think I'd like to work in the governor's office," Norris said. "I think my skill sets lend to that better than working in a government agency."
Norris has yet to make any decision about what exactly he would like to do with a career in the governor's office, but his sights are set high.
"Being the governor wouldn't be too bad," he said. "I'd rather be the president, but you've got to take small steps."
This year's Governor's Fellowship will last until June 30.
The fellowship began in 1983 under Gov. Bob Orr and is open to all college graduates who received their bachelor's degrees any time during the previous school year. The other seven Governor's Fellows for 2005-06 come from universities across Indiana, including three from Indiana University.
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