"I can confidently say that visiting alumna Congresswoman Schwartz was what convinced me to continue my career on Capitol Hill."
Maria Costigan ’12 recently began work as a press assistant and legislative correspondent for state representative John Tierney from Massachusetts’ 6th District. After working the congressman’s successful re-election campaign this past summer and fall, Costigan joined his staff in Washington, D.C. She now helps Tierney, a Democrat, keep in contact with his constituents in Massachusetts through written letters, television appearances and press releases. Asked what personality trait has most helped her achieve success, she responded, “Genuine friendliness. In my experience you can get pretty far in life if you’re either really mean or very kind, and being mean is no fun.”
Costigan participated in Success Connection, where she was paired with mentor Allyson Schwartz ’70, ’08HD, a congresswoman. The experience helped prepare her for her current job.
“I can confidently say that visiting Congresswoman Schwartz last year was what convinced me that I would enjoy continuing my career on Capitol Hill. After working on Congressman Tierney’s re-election campaign, I didn’t know if I wanted to leave the rough-and-tumble, adrenaline-fueled campaign life. But visiting her office for a day showed me that on the other end of the campaign, after election day, lies a completely different type of excitement.”