Women's Congressional Staff Association

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Diversity and Inclusion Committee

WCSA’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee is excited to work alongside other WCSA members and Congressional Staff organizations to further diversity and inclusion within WCSA on and off Capitol Hill. One of the committee’s main goals for this year is to ensure that WCSA is working to foster an inclusive environment within and on Capitol Hill.

We hope to accomplish this by working collaboratively to plan panels, networking events, and other programming focused on women and diversity.

Co-Chairs: Aria Austin and Nandini Narayan

Aria Austin serves as a Staff Assistant for Senator Mark Warner (D-VA). She started her career on the Hill as a Legislative Intern for Congresswoman Elaine Luria (D-VA-02) in 2020. Aria received her B.A. in Government with a minor in English Literature from William & Mary in May 2021.

As a proud military child, Aria has lived on both the West and East coasts, but calls Virginia home. Aria was actively involved in DEI initiatives in college through serving as a D&I Fellow in the Government department, serving as a member of the W&M Academic Diversity Project, and championing DEI initiatives as Class President.

Outside of work, Aria is very passionate about music. From choirs to a Cappella groups, she has been singing since she was 5 years old. She is currently a soprano in the Washington Chorus, and loves writing & performing songs on her guitar. In her spare time she also enjoys figure skating, going to concerts, exploring cities, and slowly but surely completing her goal of trying every Michelin star restaurant in DC.

Nandini currently work for Congressman Chris Pappas and has previously worked for Congressman Pete Aguilar, Congressman TJ Cox and Congressman Ro Khanna. All three embody the diversity in California. They have all taught her, not only does representation matter, but diversity leads to more inclusive policy. Women need to be part of all policy conversations that shape our future.

She started her congressional career in Rep. Khanna’s district office before she even graduated from California State University, East Bay with a double major in Biochemistry and Business Administration.

In her spare time Nandini likes to tutor, bake, paint, work on puzzles and watch the 49ers win!

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