Fellowship Alumni

Sarah Smaga

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2025-2026

Congressional Office Placement:
Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA-04)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Energy & Water, Interior & Environment, Science

Joseph Long

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2023-2024

Congressional Office Placement:
Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Economic Policy

Currently:
Advanced Manufacturing Strategy Fellow, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

Elmer Zapata-Mercado

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2022-2023

Congressional Office Placement:
Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Education and Health

Currently:
Assistant Director, Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative (VTSI), The Johns Hopkins University

Luyi Cheng

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2022-2023

Congressional Office Placement:
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Science, Environment and Climate

Currently:
Advisor, U.S. Department of State

Max Olender

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2021-2022

Congressional Office Placement:
Majority Staff, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Subcommittee on Children and Families
Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), Subcommittee Chair

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Health: Innovation, Industry, Regulation, and Research

Currently:
Innovation Fellow, Defense Research Projects Agency (DARPA)

Sam Anderson

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2020-2021

Congressional Office Placement:
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY-05)
Rep. Deb Haaland until January 2021

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Defense, Environment/Energy, Homeland Security, Natural Resources, Science/Space, and Human Rights

Currently:
Biological and Technology Threat Reduction Project Manager and Advisor, U.S. Department of State

Leah Cairns

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2019-2020

Congressional Office Placement:
Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA-06)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Health and Agriculture

Currently:
Associate Director, Executive Office Scientific Programs, IAVI

Hermes Taylor-Weiner

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2018-2019

Congressional Office Placement:
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Health, NIH, FDA

Currently:
Senior Manager, Process Engineering, Element Biosciences

Yasmeen Hussain

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2017-2018

Congressional Office Placement:
Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL-11)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Science, Technology, Energy, Environment, Education

Currently:
Senior Scientific Project and Alliance Manager at the Allen Institute for Brain Science

Stephanie Deluca

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2016-2017

Congressional Office Placement:
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Health

Currently:
Policy Advisor, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)

Randy Wadkins

Year(s) of BPS Fellowship: 2015-2016

Congressional Office Placement:
Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-9)

Legislative Portfolio/Issues:
Health

Currently:
Professor, University of Mississippi