JSI Scholar: Jenuel Camacho

I was born on May 24, 2002, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, during my 12 years where I became part of a very tight-knit community. However, growing up in Puerto Rico during a time where our government was on the brink of a recession, everywhere I looked I saw news outlets warning Puerto Ricans of our economic crisis, which was simply on the verge of collapsing, an issue that we are still battling with today. Given the current state of the island, the economic hardship made my family move to different places where we had to learn how to cope with different scenarios. Therefore, when I think about public policy and policy making, I realize that I can play an important role in how we can fix issues, that are involved with the well-being of all Puerto Ricans, but also the impact that policy decisions had on common people which they need to take into consideration the people who are most affected by those decisions. Being in public service will give me the opportunity to impact my community by changing the way we make policy in Puerto Rico, but also a way of being grateful to my family and community who have contributed to my personal development.

I started college in the political science program. At first, my only goal was to enter law school once I finished my bachelors degree. However, when I took my first courses in political science and economics, I realized that this topic was more complex and interesting than I anticipated, which fueled my interest in public policy and policy-making. Later, in the 2020 elections, I started working with various Puerto Rican candidates where I had the opportunity to have a closer look at how, exactly, politics and decision-making affects our communities. During this period, I decided that political science, government and policy-making was my main interest.