Silvia Catalan-Culnan

Silvia Catalan-Culnan is the Legislative Director to Assemblyman William Spearman and the first Latina elected to the Mount Laurel Township Council. 

Previously, she served a Director of Constituent Services, for State Senator Nilsa Perez-Cruz, Assemblyman Spearman and Assemblyman Bill Moen of the 5th Legislative District covering parts of Camden and Gloucester counties. Silvia Catalan-Culnan, her mother, father, and four brothers are survivors of the Colombian Civil War that killed 220,000 people. All Colombians share in that story and it instilled in Silvia an unrelenting devotion to the promise and privilege of American democracy which she is committed to nurturing and protecting. Growing up in El Carmen de Bolivar, a town of modest homes and dirt roads, her mother ingrained in her family strong Catholic faith and values, family solidarity, and respect for all people. She traveled through rural communities of Colombia educating young girls about their reproductive rights and educational opportunities. 

In college, both in Colombia and America, Silvia learned from professors and students of all backgrounds to, not only listen but to really hear and to respect everyone’s opinions, even those you don’t agree with. You can’t build a bridge across a river unless you know how wide the chasm is…and how to bridge it.