Westerman Announces Senior Staff Change

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) announced that his chief of staff, Vivian Moeglein, will be leaving his personal office to join the House Committee on Natural Resources as its first female Republican staff director. Westerman will become the committee's ranking member in January 2021. Sarah Slocum Collins, a Fourth District native and senior manager of federal government relations for Tyson Foods Inc., will replace Moeglein as chief of staff. Westerman issued the following statement:

"Over the past five years, Vivian has been an invaluable resource to our team. She brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table, and I've been so blessed to benefit from her leadership and political savvy in D.C. I know she will be an exceptional leader on the committee. I'm also thrilled to welcome Sarah to Capitol Hill as she takes on this new role. As an Arkansan, a proud University of Arkansas Law School alumna and an experienced legal consultant, Sarah is very familiar with both state and federal policy and will lead our office well. I'm so grateful to both of them for their service to the Fourth District of Arkansas. We have many exciting years ahead!"

Background

Moeglein took on the chief of staff position for Westerman in 2015, where she oversaw all staff operations, policy negotiations, long-term legislative plans and more. Prior to joining Westerman's office, Moeglein was the senior advisor for transportation programs at the American Council of Engineering Companies. She also worked in legislative roles for U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson while they were both serving as congressmen in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Collins grew up in Sheridan, Ark., received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Central Arkansas, and received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Arkansas School of Law. She worked in Northwest Arkansas for the Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce and in Little Rock for Roberts Law Firm before moving to D.C. in 2017, where she has since been a member of Tyson Foods Inc.'s federal government affairs team.