I was born on September 21, 1995 in Boston, Massachusetts. I am the son of Michelle Jones and Trent Harvey. I have lived my entire life in Dorchester with two siblings (Sherry and Alphonso). I attended k1 at Castle Square Day Care, k2-5 at Dennis C. Haley Elementary, 6th grade at the James P. Timilty Middle School. I entered Boston Latin School in the 7th grade where I will be a senior in the fall of 2013.
When I had first thought or heard someone say something about public service, I did not exactly know what it meant, and tried to find out about its meaning. Surprisingly, I was given my first opportunity to explore public service with a summer job as a peer leader for Project LISTEN at the Freedom House through ABCD when I was fourteen years old. At the Freedom House, I learned to some degree that public service was either helping or giving back to the community. This made me decided that I wanted to pursue something in life as a public servant. As I grew up, I learned that there are many careers that deal with public service, and to those who work in public service it has many meanings. I believe that public service is about giving back to the community, doing something for the goodwill of the people and loving what you do for others.
Being at Boston Latin School as a junior, I decided that I wanted to apply for the John William Ward Fellowship because I am interested in a career of internal relations I believed that my experiences from doing the Model UN Club at my school (where we go to conferences like Boston University Model UN to represent different countries to give their positions on certain issues) allowed me to take interest about a career in government or law. I also believe that the fellowship will allow me to grow as a person where I can learn the business and the various ways of how others give back to their communities in local and national governments. I also joined this fellowship because it will permit me to work on my skills of communication like networking because I like to learn about different cultures. I am currently taking outside language and culture courses of Korean at MIT, and I took Japanese in the 6th grade. I believe that a lot of communication is the key to public service when it comes to doing things for the benefit of communities that is why I decided to continue taking outside
My experience as a Ward Fellow so far has been great. I am currently working for Commissioner Ed Davis in his office at the Boston Police Headquarters this summer. This has also allowed me to get hands-on experience to work with the police because it will allow me to decide in the future as to why I might consider being a lawyer. The Ward Fellowship has even given me great opportunities to meet with many terrific people who have chosen a career in public service.
While I was in Washington DC this summer, I was able to meet with many representatives like Senator Elizabeth Warren and Congressman Joe Kennedy who represent Massachusetts at a national level and to learn about national public service for the country. It was great honor to comprehend about their experiences in public service and what inspired to pursue that career. One thing that I will able to learn from them is doing public service for the voice of the people that cannot be heard, and making a difference puts a smile on their faces. The Ward Fellowship has also allowed so far me to meet with different officials who work in public service for the people of Boston like Representative Martin J. Walsh and the Governor’s Aid. They have inspired that I really should take a career in public service because you will appreciate making a difference in one’s life. I also believe their lessons go back to the saying, “one must act as if one makes a difference”.
My main inspiration in public service has been my mother. Growing up, she has always told me that where I go in life that I should always give back to my community and never forget those in my community.