Diane Shust is the vice president for public policy at the Council for Opportunity in Education. In this role, she is a COE senior leadership team member. She is responsible for designing and implementing the government relations agenda of the Council and representing Council interests on Capitol Hill and before the U.S. Department of Education, the White House, and other relevant entities. Shust has a deep knowledge of the internal workings and nuances of Capitol Hill. She most recently served as chief of staff in the Office of Congressman Tom Suozzi (D-NY), acting as Representative Suozzi’s principal liaison with the House Democratic Leadership and the Committee on Ways and Means.
She previously served as Chief of Staff for Congressman Jim McDermott (D-W) and as Legislative Counsel to Congressman George Miller (D-CA). Shust directed government relations at the National Education Association (NEA) for 16 years. Shust is a former public defender in Washington, D.C. She received her BA in Juvenile Justice and her Masters in Education from the University of Pennsylvania and her Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center.