About Us

Our Team

Wendy Naus
Executive Director

Wendy Naus became the fourth Executive Director of COSSA in 2014 following a decade of lobbying for the federal research and policy interests of scientific societies and U.S. universities. Over her career, she has worked to shape legislation, programs, and regulations important to the research community and has advocated for increased research funding across federal agencies. In her role at COSSA, Wendy serves as the lead advocate for federal funding and policy that positively impact social and behavioral science research across the federal government, representing the breadth of the social science research enterprise. She is also responsible for the day to day operations of COSSA and member engagement. A native of Buffalo, New York, Wendy holds a B.A. in political science and urban studies from Canisius College, graduating magna cum laude from the All-College Honors Program.

Elyse Bailey
Director of Public Affairs

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Elyse Bailey joined the COSSA team as Director of Public Affairs in April 2023. Over the course of her career, Elyse has worked in communications roles throughout a wide variety of industries and comes to COSSA after three years with VisitBritain, the tourist board of Great Britain. In her role at COSSA, Elyse develops and executes key communications strategies and works to support additional advocacy and policy efforts to promote COSSA’s mission in supporting social and behavioral science research. A native of Northern Virginia, Elyse holds a B.A. in Anthropology with a double minor in IT and Biology from George Mason University.

Kenzie Shelstad
Government Relations Associate

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Kenzie Shelstad joined the COSSA team in August 2022 as a Government Relations Associate after graduating from the University of Missouri with a B.A. in international studies. In her role at COSSA, Kenzie is responsible for monitoring and analyzing Congressional activities and legislation, observing research directions and policy changes of Federal agencies, and contributing to the production and distribution of COSSA’s written and online products. Previously, Kenzie has completed advocacy internships with Her Bold Move, a non-profit political organization focused on electing women into government positions, and Resilience, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to expanding social emotional learning access throughout the United States.

Interns Wanted

COSSA accepts undergraduate interns on a rolling basis. Interested individuals, particularly from COSSA member institutions, should apply here. Any questions about the application process should be referred to Kenzie Shelstad.

About Us

Our Team

Interns Wanted

Consortium of Social Science Associations

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