Hill Diversity
The Joint Center’s hill diversity work is focused on analyzing staff diversity on the Hill. See below for research, analysis, and activities related to hill diversity.
New York Times Covers Joint Center’s 2020 Report ‘Racial Diversity Among Top Staff in Senate Personal Offices’
The Joint Center’s report, Racial Diversity Among Top Staff in Senate Personal Offices, was covered in The New York Times. “If there were more diverse staff that could speak to senators about potential blind spots that may occur in the legislation, I think the legislation would be more responsive to the needs of minority communities,”…
Racial Diversity Among Top Staff in Senate Personal Offices
Today, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies released Racial Diversity Among Top Staff in Senate Personal Offices. This report provides evidence regarding the lack of racial diversity among U.S. Senate personal office top staff positions. This report defines personal office top staff as all chiefs of staff, legislative directors, and communications directors in…
Joint Center Senior Fellow of Diversity and Inclusion Discusses Hill Diversity at Women in Government Relations D&I Virtual Summit
On July 14, Joint Center Senior Fellow of Diversity and Inclusion Dr. LaShonda Brenson spoke on a panel at Women in Government Relations’ Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Virtual Summit. At the summit, LaShonda joined prominent thought leaders on a panel to discuss why having diverse congressional staff is critical at this moment. She also provided…
Digging Deeper: 2020 Senate Democratic Caucus Diversity Numbers
On July 8, 2020, the Senate Democratic Caucus released an update of the demographic data (find 2020 numbers here) on the staff of Democratic Senators (find 2019 numbers here). The analysis below ranks the offices on their total diversity in the following categories: Top Three Racially Diverse Staff in Personal Offices Senator Cory Booker…
Joint Center Commends Senate Democrats for Releasing 2020 Staff Diversity Data, Urges More Detailed Disclosure
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 8, 2020 Contact: press@jointcenter.org WASHINGTON — The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies commends Senate Democrats for releasing their fourth annual survey on racial, ethnic, gender, and sexual orientation diversity of their staff. To date, Senate Republican offices have not released staff demographic data. Later today, Joint Center Diversity &…
New LegiStorm Report Shows The Highest Pay Disparity Between Black and White Staffers on the Hill in 20 Years
As Congress and other American institutions reckon with issues of structural racism, discrimination, and anti-Blackness, congressional staff diversity remains at the forefront of issues to be considered, as it has a direct relationship to the ability of Members of Congress to understand the diverse perspectives of their constituencies. This week, Legistorm, a web-based platform that…
Joint Center Signs Letter In Support of Establishing a Senate Office of Diversity and Inclusion
The Joint Center joined seven other organizations in signing a letter to SU.S. Senate Appropriations Committee Legislative Brand Subcommittee Chair Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) and Ranking Member Chris Murphy (D-CT) urging the Senate to establish a Senate Office of Diversity and Inclusion and “fund it adequately to operate in an independent and non-partisan manner.” Other signers…
The Joint Center Commends Speaker Nancy Pelosi for Appointing Kemba Hendrix as Executive Director of the U.S. House Office of Diversity & Inclusion
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 18, 2020 Contact: press@jointcenter.org The Joint Center Commends Speaker Nancy Pelosi for Appointing Kemba Hendrix as Executive Director of the U.S. House Office of Diversity & Inclusion WASHINGTON — The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies commends Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for appointing Kemba Hendrix as executive director of the newly established U.S.…
The Joint Center Signs Letter In Support of MODCOM Resolution, H. Res. 756
The Joint Center joined 14 other organizations in signing a letter in support of the Moving Our Democracy and Congressional Operations Towards Modernization (MODCOM) Resolution of 2019, H. Res. 756. The resolution includes guidelines for the U.S. House Office of Diversity and Inclusion to submit plans and reports and for recruiting from HBCUs. Other signees…
Joint Center Senior Fellow of Diversity & Inclusion Attends Brookings Institution Event ‘Strengthening and Reinvigorating Congress’
On January 9, Joint Center Senior Fellow of Diversity & Inclusion Dr. LaShonda Brenson attended a report launch event and panel hosted by American Political Science Association, Brookings Institution, and R Street Institute. The report, which focuses on “strengthening and reinvigorating Congress,” includes a section on staff diversity (pages 12-17) informed by the Joint Center’s…