What Happens at Prom, Stays at Prom

What happens at prom, stays at prom. Not really. That's just a funny title for this post. In a previous blog post I wrote about going to "prom" here in Washington - which is the reception between AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science & Technology) Congressional fellows and Congressional staffers who are looking for a fellow to be placed in their office. Some of the AAAS staff were specifically using the term "reception," as opposed to "prom." A former fellow called it a "meat/meet market."

It was most definitely a reception. 

Before the event, I had three of my new colleagues to my apartment. We hung and talked about what offices we wanted to work in, what questions we were asking during our interviews, complained about the grueling training (even though we learned so much!), and other things that new friends talk about. We got ready for the prom here at my apartment. I got a kick out of that - like high school friends gathering before a prom. We touched up our make-up, snacked so that we wouldn't be starving at the prom, complained about wearing heels, put on or spruced up our Washington-style "mandatory" dark suits, posed for pictures, and called for a ride from "Lift" so we wouldn't have to walk the mile from my apartment to the Capitol in heels. 

Elizabeth, Emerald, Angelique, and me - the "vowel" social scientists

We arrived at the reception. About two-thirds of of 35 Congressional fellows are brand new PhDs. I think that they tended to be more nervous. I'm using the approach to life that "we're all just people" so everyone can get over their degrees or where they work or how much money they do or don't make. This approach seems to work for me and that's what I brought to the table during the prom. Well, and my business cards. My cards in my left hand suit pocket, the cards I receive in the right hand pocket. 

Most of us were trying to execute these kinds of rules that we learned from Mary Crane, a networking expert. Either that, or as we reached in front of someone, held our beverage in the "wrong" hand, or hung out at the buffet line too long, we noted how disappointed Ms. Crane would be with us. "Mary Crane would not approve." If you run into a AAAS fellow at any time in your life, just mention Mary Crane and you'll have an instant connection. She's a hoot; in case you want to watch a video of Mary Crane, click here. 

But, I digress. Back to the prom...I mean the reception. It was an interesting night. We each had our personal list of people we wanted to talk to who wanted to take on fellows. I wanted to talk to offices that were working on social issues, health care, education, child welfare, and the like. I didn't need to talk to offices that wanted to work on energy policy or the environment. I left those offices for my hard science colleagues. Actually, Elizabeth and I made the rounds together. We had similar lists of people to see. We chatted people up. Talked about ourselves, our expertise, heard what was going on in each office, and then we exchanged business cards, along with pledges to be in contact right away. Everyone was very friendly. It was extremely low pressure. Even a couple of senators showed up to make brief talks!

When it was over, the fellows hit the buffet line, hard, this time. Some of us gathered around a small table and a man approached me from behind. 

"Are you Emily Douglas?"

"Yes...hello!" (Giving him the Mary Crane handshake.)

"My colleague is interested in your profile and the work that you do, but she couldn't be here."

"Let me give you my business card..." (Mary would be so proud...)

And, so it went. That was very nice, but I didn't know what to expect from it. I went home tired that night. I grabbed a Car2Go to drive home -- parked one block away from the Supreme Court, took a Hulu break, and then fired off three different types of emails to 15 people: (1) it was so nice to meet you tonight, I'd love to talk more, (2) I saw your office on the list for wanting a fellow, could I set up an appointment to meet you, and (3) you're not on the list, but I'd love to meet with you and explain what a AAAS fellow does. I got a response right away. Who from, did you ask? The woman who had her colleague track me down. We set an interview for the next day at 11am.

I prepped for my meeting and then got myself to one of the Congressional office buildings the next morning. I met with a lovely woman. Using discretion I'll say that she works both for a committee and in the personal office for a member of Congress. She told me about the work they had done on fatal child maltreatment; she had looked up my work, had read the testimony that I had given in front of the National Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities, and we talked about dead kids for over 30 minutes. She's working on child welfare issues broadly and could use help with that. Amazing. 

I have accepted the offer and I have been spared the 10-15 interviews that many others are going to take in the coming 2-3 weeks. So, I can take my trip home this coming week to visit and attend a memorial service without much of a burden at all. And, I have a few more days to work on papers, too, before starting. 

This might have been the best prom experience. Ever.