For Oberlin College football players Justin Cruz and Dylan Mehri, a career in politics may be on the horizon as they were recently named Cole Scholars in the Oberlin Initiative in Electoral Politics (OIEP).
 
The OIEP is a non-partisan program funded by Oberlin College alumni Richard and Dorothy Cole to encourage Oberlin graduates to run for and serve in public office.
 
The highly selective program offers its recipients a vast array of experiences that will help shape their future careers in the political field.  Ten to twelve students are chosen annually and the OIEP provides them with internships during the summer months. During that time, they will test theories from the academic literature they've read in the classroom.
 
Both student-athletes credit Assistant Professor of Politics Michael Parkin for increasing their interest in the subject.
 
"Coming in to Oberlin I wasn't one hundred percent sure if politics was something I wanted to do, but after taking class with Professor Parkin my interest was renewed," Cruz said. "We had to create a mock political campaign, going through all of the different areas of what it takes from start to finish and it interested me a lot."
 
Mehri, who is native of Washington, D.C., has had political roots instilled him from the time he was a child by his father, Cyrus. As a prominent civil rights attorney, Mr. Mehri has helped raise funds for various campaigns throughout his career. 
 
"I have had the opportunity to meet different politicians, including John Lewis, one of the "Big Six" leaders of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s," Dylan said.
 
"However, the class with Professor Parkin really piqued my interest in the field. We were able to discuss interesting and controversial topics, which I really loved, including current immigration and terrorism issues."
 
Cruz, a key member of the Oberlin baseball team, first learned about the Cole Scholars program from teammates Harrison Wollman and Machmud Makhmudov, who each said it was the best thing they have ever done at Oberlin.
 
With the large support staff of the OIEP, including a prominent alumni base that assists in funding attendance at campaign training sessions, Cruz understands the value of this amazing opportunity.
 
"The best part of the program is the experience you get and the people you get to meet, rather than just having something else to put on your resume," he said.
 
"I have seen first-hand what alumni from this program are doing, with graduates earning jobs on campaigns right out of school and supervising people 10-years their senior," Mehri mentioned.
 
Both Cruz and Mehri understand that implementing change is no easy task, but each stresses modernization rather than the current climate of polarization.
 
"What I think our generation needs to do is have a global conversation to stop creating enemies that can lead to ISIS and similar groups," Mehri said. "We are not going to be able to fix the global problems that been created by being exclusive."
 
Cruz and Mehri are yet to receive their placements for the 2016 summer internships, but whatever they are, they won't be their first real-world experience in the political field.
 
Mehri's father is the co-founder of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, which is an affinity group for NFL minority coaches, front office and scouting personnel that advocates for the hiring and promotion of minority candidates within the NFL ranks.
 
Mehri served as an intern for the alliance, conducting research on behalf of the Native American tribes as it related to the controversy of the current name of the Washington football team.
 
"I have been able to talk to a lot of constituents who have opposing and varied thought processes," he said. "We were able to secure a meeting with the team's upper-level management, but unfortunately they were unable to talk peacefully about the matter."
 
The experience is one that has certainly left a long-lasting impression on Mehri.
 
"I was the youngest person in the room by far, and I was a little startled by how hostile they were treating not only me, but very well-respected people in the NFL world.  I understand they want to keep their traditions in place, but not to have any meaningful discourse, you can see how harmful that would be, not just for a corporation, but on a larger global scale."
 
Mehri's grandparents emigrated to the United States from Iran in the 1950s, so the topic is one that has a special place in his heart.
 
"The Iranian government put my grandmother on house arrest for her political views but fortunately they were able to escape that. The U.S. was able to give them an opportunity – eventually giving me an opportunity – and I want other people to have that chance. I don't want the U.S. to have closed borders against certain groups."
 
Cruz spent the summer of 2015 working in the mayor's office in the city of Oakland, California, as part of President's Obama's My Brother's Keeper initiative with the goal of making the city more equitable as it relates to boys and young men of color.
 
'"It was such an eye-opening experience," he said. "On the news, you often hear about all the bad things that happen, but I was thrown right into it having to go around to every city department to see what they were specifically doing for boys and men of color."
 
After analyzing the data he received for different areas, Cruz was able to make recommendations to the city regarding what they needed to improve on and where some of their resources be allocated.
 
"A lot of people preach equality, but it is equity that actually matters," he said. "Not everybody starts off in the same place, so putting resources to the proper areas of need is most important."
 
While at Oberlin Cruz also developed an interest in climate change and hopes his political career will focus on that area.
 
"In terms of the environment and helping, everyone can do their part with little things such as recycling or donating time to clean up the streets. However, from a political standpoint I think we need to educate the population on biodiversity and global warming and, through the Cole Scholars, I hope to learn the most effective tools in order to do so."
 
Mehri and Cruz are excited about being in the program when they when return to Oberlin following winter term.
 
"Getting thrown into a real-world experience in which I am going to learn from and react to what the politicians are telling you, is going to help me mature a lot." Mehri said. "I know I am going to learn so much from the people I am working with and that's going to make me more experienced and knowledgeable for any job I go into in the future."
 
'Knowledge is power," Cruz added. "Working in a political office helped set me up for this opportunity to become a Cole Scholar. Years from now I can look back at this program that gave me so much and set me up for a lifetime of opportunities. Making those connections is extremely important because one day you could be in the same position to help an upcoming politician."

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