Your Leading Experts on Congress
The Government Affairs Institute is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that has been the nation's leading provider of congressional education for over fifty years. For information on our courses, please click here >>
Learn about the Certificate Program in Legislative Studies. Click here >>
Quality training is an important aspect of advancing government. Click here >>
How to best represent your organization before Congress. Click here >>
Stay in touch with the Institute’s leading experts on Congress. Click here >>
Congressional power of the purse has been an unusually strong American trait from the...
May 21, 2025 (first class meeting)
The purpose of the Navy Capitol Hill Workshop is to provide a first-hand understanding...
June 2 - 5, 2025
This core course provides a comprehensive look at congressional processes and organization, and at...
June 9 - 12, 2025
Sign up to receive email updates.
Read our blog dedicated to providing practical and academic perspectives on congressional policy, politics, and procedure.
Kristin Nicholson | April 14, 2025
Dear Friends, As the House and Senate begin a two-week recess, members are returning home...
Josh Huder | April 14, 2025
Congressional appropriations are having a year. The second Trump administration kicked things off by engaging...
Kristin Nicholson | March 6, 2025
Dear Friends: First, let me say that we are closely monitoring the rapid changes and...
Kristin Nicholson became the Director of the Government Affairs Institute in February 2017. Prior to joining GAI, she spent two decades on Capitol Hill, where she served for sixteen years as Chief of Staff to Congressman Jim Langevin (D-RI), a senior member of the House Committees on Armed Services and Homeland Security.
Worth H. Hester, M.P.A., joined the faculty of GAI in 1988 as a Presidential Management Fellow and took the job of Assistant Director in 1999. During seven years of government service, he served as an Employee Development Specialist, Program Analyst, and Legislative Analyst for a Member of Congress.
Mark B. Harkins joined the Government Affairs Institute as a Senior Fellow in July 2013 after having been a guest lecturer numerous times back to 2005. Prior to joining GAI, Mark was a government relations professional for more than five years where he focused on the representation of corporate, nonprofit and government clients before Congress and the Executive Branch.
Joshua C. Huder, Ph.D., joined the Government Affairs Institute as a Senior Fellow in 2013. He has taught courses on American government, advanced legislative process, and other American politics courses. He has provided political analysis to several news outlets, including the Washington Post, Congressional Quarterly, Newsweek, Bloomberg News, CNN, the Washington Examiner, U.S. News, Al-Jazeera, Yahoo News, and is a regular contributor for the Christian Science Monitor.
Laura Blessing, Ph.D. joined the Government Affairs Institute as a Senior Fellow in 2015 and also teaches in the McCourt School of Public Policy. After earning her PhD from the University of Virginia, she worked as an American Political Science Association (APSA) Congressional Fellow, serving as the legislative assistant for tax policy for a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee. Her interests include Congress, political parties, and policy, particularly tax and budget policy.
Matt Glassman, Ph.D., joined the Government Affairs Institute as a Senior Fellow in 2017. He has taught courses on and off the Hill on American government, congressional process, congressional-presidential, and congressional leadership. Prior to joining GAI, Matt worked on the Hill at the Congressional Research Service (CRS) for ten years.
Katina joined the Government Affairs Institute in February 2008 as Educational Programs Coordinator. Over the time that she has been with GAI, Katina has taken on many different responsibilities by advancing to her current roles as the Director of the Certificate in Legislative Studies program and a Fellow position that is part
