Manuel Contreras

Manuel is a federal domestic policymaker with over a decade of experience in the U.S. Senate. Most recently, he served as Senior Education Policy Advisor on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, where he led Senator Bernie Sanders' K–12 and civil rights policy agenda and previously worked under Senator Patty Murray. He helped secure $190 billion for public schools through COVID relief legislation, delivered $2 billion for student mental health and school safety as lead drafter of the K–12 provisions in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, and spearheaded reauthorization efforts for the Institute of Education Sciences. He has led strategy to prevent the dismantling of the federal Department of Education and the weaponization of civil rights laws. Manuel graduated from Brown University in 2016, where he concentrated in cognitive science. After SPIA, Manuel aims to fight for bold, modern policy that puts working people first. He is a proud first-generation college student, Head Start alum, and son of Mexican immigrants who knows that in the wealthiest nation on earth, inequality is not an accident, it is a policy choice. Outside of work, Manuel enjoys playing ball nearly as much as his dog Dingo!