Congrats to our 2021 Capitol Pathways cohort!

Keynote Speaker

Representative Rena Moran

Representative Rena Moran is the Chair of the Committee on Ways and Means in the Minnesota House of Representatives. In 2010, Rep. Rena Moran became the first African American to represent District 65A. She represents the St. Paul communities of Rondo, Frogtown, Summit-University, Thomas-Dale, Midway, a portion of the North End and Cathedral Hill.

As a legislator, she has focused on protecting children in the child welfare system, strengthening schools, reducing educational disparities, and fighting for affordable housing, economic opportunity for all, and women’s rights. 

Rep. Moran formerly served as Chair of the House Health and Human Services Policy Committee, House Deputy Minority Leader, and was the founding Chair of the People of Color and Indigenous (POCI) Caucus and the United Black Legislative Caucus. She holds a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from Southern Illinois University and was recently the Director of Prevention Initiatives and Parent Leadership at Prevent Child Abuse MN and Minnesota Communities Caring for Children. Rep. Moran is a graduate of the Bush Foundation Fellowship, Humphrey Policy Fellowship, and Henry Toll Fellowship.

2018 Capitol Pathways Alum | Social Responsibility and Equity Program Manager, Optum

Biftu Bussa

Biftu is a 2018 alum of Capitol Pathways.

Biftu Bussa (she/her) is an experienced community organizer with a demonstrated history of working in the public policy industry. She is driven by her passion for advancing marginalized communities’ health and well-being through direct service, policy, and advocacy. 

Currently, Biftu works as the Social Responsibility and Equity Program Manager at Optum. She focuses on advancing health equity by overseeing all employee and volunteer engagement opportunities. Prior to joining the Optum Social Responsibility team, Biftu served as an Immigration Specialist at the Minnesota Freedom Fund (MFF). At MFF, Biftu led all immigration efforts and focused on helping immigrants detained by ICE by paying their Immigration bonds and providing post-release support. Prior to this role, Biftu was a Community Representative at The Office of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. During her time, Biftu focused on community engagement and constituent outreach. Biftu also worked on Ilhan Omar’s campaign for Congress. 

Outside of work, Biftu serves on the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage, the Board of Directors for Gender Justice, and as the Community Engagement Chair on the New Leaders Council -Twin Cities board. Biftu obtained her B.S. in Public Health with concentrations in Public Policy and Health Sciences from St. Catherine University. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, traveling, reading a good book, and playing the guitar. 

2017 Capitol Pathways Alum | Public Policy Director, COPAL

Marco Hernandez

Marco is a 2017 alum of Capitol Pathways.

As the Public Policy Director at COPAL, Marco is working with COPAL’s membership and volunteer leaders to fight for environmental justice, affordable healthcare, and driver’s licenses for all in Minnesota. In addition to being a Public Policy Director; he is an appointed member on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Climate Change, a board member representing Congressional District 4 on the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs, and the Executive Vice President of the Minnesota Young DFL. Marco understands that in order to dismantle White supremacy, good policy -and any resulting legislation- must center BIPOC communities and their liberation.

Capitol Pathways Intern | University of Minnesota

Nithya Venkat

Nithya Venkat is a current Capitol Pathways intern placed at Hennepin Healthcare. She is a rising sophomore at the University of Minnesota majoring in Biology and planning a double major in Global Studies. Nithya also volunteers with mutual aid groups like the St. Paul Encampment Hub and last fall. she was a Policy Fellow at Minnesota Youth Collective. She loves astrology, cooking, rom-coms, and analyzing pop music.