Clay Cortez

Clay Cortez is a candidate for the Master of Public Affairs (DC Concentration) at the LBJ School. He graduated from Sarah Lawrence College with a degree in political science and film and spent a year at Wadham College at Oxford University focused on political theory and development studies. 

While earning his degree, Cortez studied the impact of economic background on the political behavior of Latino college students as a research fellow at the Mexican American Legislative Caucus. Upon graduation, he gained experience in federal policymaking as a research intern with the Center for American Progress’ Structural Reform and Governance team. Cortez then served as a Policy Associate on Congressman Beto O’Rourke’s 2022 Gubernatorial campaign where he contributed to the development of the candidate’s policy platform on issues including affordable housing and mental healthcare access. 

For the last two sessions, Cortez has served as Legislative Director for State Representative Josey Garcia, where he has taken part in the development of over ninety pieces of legislation. Through this experience, he has developed an appreciation for the impact of economic inequality on disparities across policy issues.

Cortez is passionate about poverty reduction policies, particularly in improving the effectiveness of social welfare programs and increasing access to affordable housing. He is interested in policy apprenticeship opportunities that allow him to deepen his knowledge of relevant federal programs, economics, and quantitative analysis.

Policy Interests: Poverty reduction, social welfare programs, affordable housing