As a political science major at Marymount University and with a total of a year serving at the U.S. House of Representatives, I am passionate about public service and civic engagement. I have over seven years of experience in advocating for issues such as mental health, substance use, gun violence prevention, LGBTQ+ rights, and the climate crisis, working with both Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress to find compromise and get legislation passed.I began my public service tenure after a school shooting took place in May 2019 at the STEM School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, where I had a close friend in the same classroom where the shooting began which led to a horrific and traumatic experience. That same year, I learned about the loss of a childhood friend who took her own life at sixteen-years old. Since these tragedies, I had the privilege to champion a bill through the Colorado state legislature when I was a junior in high school that allows students to be marked excused from school due to mental or behavioral health reasons (mental health day bill).Prior to my employment in the House, I had also contributed to several impactful federal policy initiatives, such as the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act Reauthorization Act, primarily the NARCAN and fentanyl-related provisions, tele-health expansion and extension and bipartisan negotiations on common sense school safety and gun violence prevention. I have also worked with then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi's senior health team to secure millions of dollars towards bolstering the mental health workforce capacity and to fund the 9-8-8 Lifeline.During my recent employment in Congresswoman Jackson Lee's office this past Summer as a Legislative and Managerial Fellow, I had the privilege and honor to have successfully helped secure several key earmarks aligned with the Congresswoman’s priorities which were ultimately incorporated into the SFORPS and NDAA bills for Fiscal Year 2025, as I handled the Congresswoman's Budget and Rules Committee portfolios, in addition to handling the Congresswoman's gun violence prevention, mental health and substance abuse legislation and policies.