Every day, Luke Catanzaro helps connect congressional offices, respond to requests and keep information flowing between U.S. House leadership and Republican representatives. As a member services assistant in House Majority Leader Steve Scalise's office, his work depends on clear communication and relationship building, skills he developed as a political science student in the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences.
Catanzaro began sharpening those skills at the University of South Carolina, where he learned that communicating well often starts with listening. In a Middle Eastern politics course, he learned to weigh multiple perspectives on complicated issues and strengthened his writing — lessons he now applies in a profession where people often approach the same issue with competing priorities.
"Politics is a world where not everyone can get what they want," Catanzaro said. "Communication is important, especially as a staffer."
At USC, Catanzaro also found a way to get a foot in the door to his ideal career. When he entered the political science major and started looking for ways to grow in politics beyond the classroom, he remembered a childhood friend from his youth lacrosse team days with connections in Washington, D.C. Catanzaro called him and asked if he would help him find an internship.
Capitol Hill is largely about the relationships you make. They're looking for good, hardworking people who want to make a difference and who know how to connect well with others.
That call led to his first congressional internship with the House Small Business Committee, where Catanzaro conducted legislative research to help prepare for committee hearings. The work gave him a chance to apply the analytical and writing skills he had developed in the classroom, but some of the internship's most lasting lessons came from the people around him. He spent time getting to know staff members, asking questions and learning how they had built their own careers on the Hill.
When the summer ended, Catanzaro kept in touch. The following year, two staff members he had worked with moved to the House Majority Whip's Office. He let them know he wanted to return to Washington, and that led to his second internship.
"The connections I made working at the committee were consequential in helping me get into that office the next summer," Catanzaro said. "Capitol Hill is largely about the relationships you make. Rarely does an office ask what your GPA was. They're looking for good, hardworking people who want to make a difference and who know how to connect well with others."
The second internship showed Catanzaro another side of congressional work. In the Majority Whip's Office, he helped coordinate all-member meetings, lunches and listening sessions on legislation. The experience gave him a closer look at how congressional staff communicate with members, understand their concerns and work together to build support around legislation.
Together with his courses, the internships gave Catanzaro experience on both the research and relationship-driven sides of congressional work. After graduating in 2024, he joined Scalise's office, where those skills now come together in his role as a member services assistant.
As a liaison between the majority leader and Republican Conference members, Catanzaro spends much of his day corresponding with congressional offices, connecting staff with policy experts and helping navigate everything from legislative questions to meeting logistics.
"The beautiful thing about what I do now in the House is that every day is a little bit different," he said.
The variety also requires Catanzaro to adapt his approach to the person and situation in front of him. Sometimes that means relaying information or finding the right policy expert to answer a question. Other times, it means finding common ground or delivering an answer someone may not want to hear.
Catanzaro now passes those lessons along to the interns he mentors, encouraging them to do what helped him find his own footing on the Hill: meet colleagues for coffee, stay curious and take time to build connections. Just as importantly, he reminds them to be thoughtful about how they communicate, whether they're making an introduction in person or writing an email.
"People will get an impression of you from your correspondence," he said. "How you communicate makes an impact."