Graduate Sets Stage for Future in Policymaking

ATLANTA — Taylor Jacobs (B.S. ’24) was a drama major at Pebblebrook High School, the performing arts magnet school in Mableton, Ga. She loved being on stage and thought she’d pursue a career in drama or technical theater.

However, Jacobs was exposed to learning and experiences that, by the time she graduated in 2019, made her more interested in policy, community and systemic change than in acting.

“I had some really great teachers in social studies,” she said. “I’d liked the subject since I was a kid, but when I got to cosplay as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and do the things she did like present bills, craft laws and such, I loved learning about that and about how to make decisions. Our teachers posed serious historical questions that piqued my interest in policymaking.”

To further her newfound passion, Jacobs thought Washington, D.C., was where she should go next. She traveled to D.C. for her first round of college campus visits and toured Howard, Georgetown and Georgia Washington universities, but did not feel they were the place for her.

“It was not just the campuses, but the prices,” she said. “Tuition and living expenses were astronomical. I didn’t feel I was supposed to be there for college.”

Next, she toured several campuses in Georgia. She fell in love with Georgia State University’s downtown campus.

“The way the campus is integrated in the city, Georgia State reminded me of the things I love about D.C.,” she said. “I saw business professionals, government officials and others walk with purpose. I got a sense of community outside of the campus. Because we’re so close to the state Capitol, it made the things I wanted to do more accessible.”

Once on campus, Jacobs enjoyed getting to know the city of Atlanta.

“Even though I grew up in Acworth, an Atlanta suburb, being a student here allowed me to experience my first time on the BeltLine, at Krog Street Market and in the Old Fourth Ward,” Jacobs said. “It gave me the opportunity to live in a major city and get that experience I wouldn’t have had at other traditional colleges."

During her first two years, Jacobs explored different degrees and majors before choosing the public policy program.

“My friends thought I was crazy to change my major during my junior year,” she said, “but it’s been the best decision I’ve made. I’ve made so many connections I can explore outside of college.”

A brief connection she made in high school with U.S. Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., helped her secure an internship in his office the summer before her final year at Georgia State. During a visit he made to Pebblebrook, Jacobs’ mother took their photo together.

“He was at my high school because of the professional relationship my mother had built with him over the years,” she said. “I held onto the photo, thinking it might be good for when I would need it.”

U.S. Rep. David Scott with Taylor Jacobs at Pebblebrook High School.

The decision to keep the photo was wise. During her third year at Georgia State, Jacobs began looking for an internship for her policy major and ran into a series of roadblocks.

“It was a scary time,” she said. “I’d been applying to internships all over with no response. So, I contacted Representative Scott’s office, sending the photo so he could attach my face to my name. I didn’t think I would get the internship, as my application was past due. But his office called me a few weeks later and sent me the onboarding packet.”

Jacobs spent June through August 2023 interning at Scott’s district office in Riverdale, Ga. There, she served constituents who contacted the congressman with all kinds of needs, from issues with the Internal Revenue Service to assistance with their passports or with immigration. She was doing the community-level work she had hoped to do.

Jacobs is well into a job search now. Her goal is to find a position as soon as she graduates. Long-term, she wants to be a legislative lobbyist, preferably at the state level, working to support the crafting and passage of laws. She’s working with the Andrew Young School’s office of Career Services and Alumni Relations to find connections that will prove helpful in this search.

She also hopes her story offers an important message to other students.

“I want to make sure students and potential students know their path through college may not be linear,” Jacobs said. “Changing majors can work out for the best. Give yourself opportunities to make mistakes and make friends with those mistakes.”