Jahana Hayes

Jahana Hayes assumed office as U.S. representative for Connecticut's 5th District on Jan. 3, 2019.

Hayes was born on March 8, 1973, in Waterbury, Connecticut, and grew up in the Berkeley Heights housing project in Waterbury. After completing an alternative high school program in 1990 after becoming a teenaged parent, she later went on to earn an associate degree in liberal arts and sciences from Naugatuck Valley Community College in 2002, a bachelor's degree from Southern Connecticut State University in 2005, and a Master of Arts in curriculum and instruction from the University of Saint Joseph in 2012. She taught high school history from 2004-2017 and was the talent and professional development supervisor at Waterbury Public Schools from 2017-2019. In 2015, she was John F. Kennedy Teacher of the Year and then the Waterbury School District Educator of the Year, and in 2016 she was the recipient of the National Teacher of the Year Award.

For information on Hayes' policy subject areas, committee appointments and sponsored/co-sponsored legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives, please visit her profile on https://www.congress.gov.