Matsui Center Cal-in-Sacramento Fellows

About the Program

The Cal-in-Sacramento Fellowship is designed to train the next generation of public service leaders through a highly supportive and comprehensive approach to experiential learning.

Fellows develop critical skills and engage thoughtfully with key policy issues using a 3-pillar model, combining coursework, research training, and professional development. These components provide the foundation for the Cal-in-Sacramento capstone: the summer public service internship.

Cal-in-Sacramento Fellowship

Cal-in-Sacramento is one of the University of California’s largest and most prestigious campus-based public service internship programs. For the past five decades, hundreds of Cal students have gone to Sacramento under our auspices to gain first-hand experience in the most dynamic state capital in the country. Many of these students have gone on to careers in politics, government, and public service.

Cal-in-Sac Supplemental Fellowships

Cal-in-Sacramento Supplemental Fellowships

Most summer internships are unpaid. To assist with affordability and ensure that this life-changing public service opportunity is open to all student regardless of financial status, the Cal-in-Sac Fellowship Program provides students with free, shared housing at Sac State, a $200 transportation stipend, and a modest living stipend (usually $750-$1000). Cal-in-Sacramento applicants are also invited to apply to one of the following supplemental Fellowships, which includes a larger living stipend ($2550) along with specific requirements related to...

Sacramento Partners

For 50 years, the Cal-in-Sacramento program has helped prepare our state's future leaders for careers in public service. Help us train the next generation!

Every year, the Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service at UC Berkeley sends 25-30 undergraduate students to Sacramento to complete highly substantive public service internships. Before commencing their internships, Fellows are required to take a 3-unit spring semester course on California politics, policy, and governance, which is designed to train and...

Student FAQ

Have a question about the Matsui Center or IGS? Here are some common questions we receive from students.

Don't see the question you're looking for? Reach out to igs@berkeley.edu or matsuicenter@berkeley.edu.

Paola Castellanos Martinez

Class of 2025
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2025 Diversity & Entrepreneurship Fellow

Paola Castellanos Martinez (She/Her)

Paola Castellanos Martinez is a first-generation Latina student at UC Berkeley majoring in Political Science and Chicanx Latinx Studies. Raised in the San Gabriel Valley and daughter of two working-class parents, she is motivated by her experiences of growing up in an underfunded community to address issues surrounding prison, housing, labor, and immigration reform.

In her last year at UC Berkeley, she focused her thesis on studying the relationship between being an undocumented student to...

IGS Diversity and Entrepreneurship Initiative

The Diversity and Entrepreneurship Initiative

The Diversity and Entrepreneurship Initiative expands Berkeley undergraduate research, advocacy and experiential learning focused on the political and economic challenges faced by diverse entrepreneurs in California.

About the Fellowship

The Diversity and Entrepreneurship Fellowship supports rigorous undergraduate research on topics related to POC- and women-owned small businesses in California. Each year, the Matsui Center selects up to 10 students from the incoming...

Joy Ruppert

Class of 2027
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Joy Ruppert (She/Her)

Joy Ruppert is a Chinese American transracial adoptee studying Political Science with minors in Ethnic Studies and Politics, Philosophy, and Law. Born in San Diego, Joy has been an advocate for educational opportunities and equal representation in both school and political systems. Growing up in predominantly white spaces, Joy understands what it feels like not to have a seat at the table or to believe that one can make a meaningful impact in their community. Motivated by this experience, Joy...

Lara Zangana

Class of 2026
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento
2025 Diversity & Entrepreneurship Fellow
2024 Democracy Camp in Berkeley

Lara Zangana (she/her)

Lara Zangana is a first-generation undergraduate student at UC Berkeley, pursuing a double major in Society and Environment and Conservation and Resource Studies. With a strong passion for equitable business practices, innovative energy solutions, and cutting-edge technology, Lara understands that sustainability and innovation go hand in hand in addressing today’s pressing challenges. As a Climate and Youth Engagement Fellow with the Student Environmental Resource Center (SERC) at UC Berkeley, she contributed over...

Christina Velazquez

Class of 2025
2025 Cal-in-Sacramento

Christina Velazquez Martinez is a first generation Latina from Laton, California. Growing up in Central California Christina became aware of educational spaces and opportunities to advance herself and her fellow community.


She currently is a 4th year student at UC Berkeley double majoring in Social Welfare and Educational Sciences. At Cal Christina is a facilitator of Muxeres Activas En Letras y Cambio Social (MALCS) since 2022. Creating syllabuses, leading discussion circles, and connecting first generation Latine, Afro-Latine, Indigenous, and gender non...