ATHENS, Ohio -- The National Assembly for Wales was set up by British Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1999 as part of his drive to devolve government. Now the Assembly has asked Ohio University to be its recruitment center for interns from across the United States.

Eleven Ohio University students are currently in Wales participating in this internship program. Interested students from all majors can find out more about the program Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 6:30 p.m. in Bentley 233.

Harold Molineu, professor in Political Science, is the director of the internship program and says that US students are highly valued in Britain: "Many of the politicians in Wales had American interns when they worked in London and found them to be particularly helpful. Since Ohio University is the gatekeeper of this program for the entire US, we have an excellent opportunity to promote our students into these positions."

Wales, with around 3 million people, is one of the three nations of Great Britain, along with England and Scotland. The new Assembly is located in the capital of Wales, Cardiff, two hours west of London.

A few Welsh-American fun facts:

• America may have taken its name from a Welshman not Amerigo Vespucci.
• Pennsylvania took its name after the Welsh, not William Penn
• There are over 11 Welsh-American societies in Ohio University and over 100 in the U.S.
• Some famous Hollywood stars are Welsh, such as Anthony Hopkins (Nixon, Hannibal) and Catherine Zeta-Jones (Traffic, Mask of Zoro)
• Welsh is the oldest extant language in Europe
• The National Assembly for Wales marks the first home-rule for Wales for over 700 years