George Conant has been serving as the Assistant Vice Chancellor for the Office of Federal Relations (OFR) since June 2021. Prior to stepping into this role, George had been the legislative director of Federal Relations at OFR since 2003. In that role, he managed the legislative affairs affecting the California State University (CSU) system, which included serving as an advocate and spokesperson in Washington, D.C., assessing legislation and determining the fiscal, policy, and legal implications of proposed legislation, supporting systemwide advocacy efforts, helping our campuses with issues involving federal agencies, and developing the overall strategy and advocacy efforts of the Office of Federal Relations. 

Before joining the CSU, George worked for the U.S House of Representatives, where he served for a decade as the lead professional staff member for higher education issues for the House Education Committee.  In that role, George was instrumental in the creation of Title V of the Higher Education Act, which provides federal funds for capacity building at Hispanic-Serving Institutions and had the privilege of working on enhancements to the Pell Grant program with the late Senator Pell and his staff.  George holds a BS in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.