Emma Coles

Hometown, city, and state or country: Easthampton, MA

Degree and Graduation year: MPPA ‘25

Where I am interning: The Boston Housing Authority as a Fellow with the Civic Action Project (CAP).

What I am doing there: I am working with the Real Estate Development team, primarily on their Scattered Site Initiative. I have been conducting data analysis, planning resident meetings, redesigning RFPs, and slowly learning the intracies of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s public housing regulations. I spend every Thursday with the nineteen other CAP Fellows, connecting with them and meeting with leaders in the public and private sector. We’ve met with former and current state representatives, City Council members, Boston Globe employees, members of Mayor Wu’s administration, the President of UMass, political consultants, philanthropists, and more. I have learned so much from our guests as well as my fellow Fellows and am so grateful to be a part of this fellowship.  

The most important thing I am learning: I can’t pick one most important thing, so here are three! 1. That policy in the real world is tough and complicated, and there is no perfect solution to every situation. However, the lack of an easy and obvious answer is what makes policy work so exciting; there is room for creativity and new endeavors. 2. That change, especially in the public sector, takes so much time. You really need to be invested in the day-to-day details, while also thinking long term. 3. If the Red Sox are playing, do not take the Green Line between 5:00 and 6:00pm.   

The most challenging part of my internship: I don’t have a background in development and financing, so there has been a learning curve regarding those topics.  

What surprised me the most: How many things are going on “behind the scenes”—no matter the initiative or policy area, the visible part of the iceberg is only a fraction of what is under the water.

Why I’m studying public policy: I am studying public policy because I want to make a difference in my community. So many of the crises we are facing, especially homelessness, are because of past policy actions and inaction. I want to learn the skills necessary to create and implement policies that will change things for the better.

Future plans: I’ll let you know in May 2025!