Our 2018 Fellows are getting to work in Congress!
We are proud to announce that our 2018 fellows have found their placements in Congress! Five of the Congressional Innovation Fellows have begun on the Hill. This year’s class continues the expansion trend set by our 2017 cohort and the fellows came from every corner of the tech sector, bringing experience from roles in military intelligence, civil society, startups and cyber-defense.
Bukky Adebayo is serving with Sen. Tom Udall of New Mexico, supporting on issues of emerging technology and inequality.
Collin Anderson is serving with Sen. Richard Blumenthal, supporting on cybersecurity and international human rights.
James Gimbi is serving with Sen. Rand Paul, supporting on cybersecurity and defense.
Robbie Narang is serving with the House Ways & Means Committee Subcommittee on Health minority staff (Ranking Member Richard Neal) and supporting on a range of biotechnology issues.
John Price is serving with Sen. Cory Gardner and supporting on emerging cybersecurity and federal IT procurement challenges.
We began the year with a two-week orientation in Washington, D.C., where fellows participated in legislative process bootcamps and met with tech policy leaders throughout the city. From there, the fellows spent three weeks meeting with prospective offices, finding the right spot to serve out the duration of the program.
And we had a tremendous 2017 overall. Maurice Turner, who served with the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee majority staff (Chairman Ron Johnson), has joined the Center for Democracy and Technology as a Senior Technologist on Election Security.
And two of our 2017 fellows were hired and are now permanent staff in the U.S. Senate.
Sunmin Kim, who served with Sen. Brian Schatz, Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation and the Internet, and worked on emerging transportation issues like data sharing and autonomous vehicles, has joined the Senator's permanent staff as his Technology Policy Advisor.
Chris Soghoian, who served with Sen. Ron Wyden, working on surveillance and cybersecurity issues, has joined the Senator's permanent staff as his Senior Technologist.
We’re excited for the new year and for the work ahead to help build a 21st century Congress!