Laura is a life-long resident of Minnesota and has lived in St. Paul since 2003, moving to Como Park in June 2013 and living in the neighborhood since. Laura is committed to her community, and in serving on the Como Community Council, she hopes to support her community in achieving stability – social, economic, and otherwise. Laura seeks a community role that leverages her legal and public affairs education and experience, engages her knowledge, skills and abilities, presents opportunities for both personal and professional growth and development, and allows her to serve the public, and more specifically, District 10 and its residents. With these qualities and qualifications, along with her passion for community and commitment to facilitating individual and collective wellbeing, Laura is well-positioned to support District 10, and the greater Como Park community, in becoming a place people can be happy and thrive and where its residents are able to live the lives they want to live. Laura’s background makes her uniquely situated to contribute to the mission of the Como Community Council by engaging her qualities and qualifications, and other attributes, to serve the community as a whole and its individual and family residents.

Laura is an Attorney and the Founder of BUSIAN Law + Consulting, a public interest law firm serving people and communities in the Twin Cities Metro Area and Greater Minnesota. The firm’s mission is to transform lives and build community by providing exceptional, affordable, and effective services. Laura graduated from the College of Saint Benedict with a major in Sociology and minors in Spanish and Psychology, and from William Mitchell College of Law in 2006. After law school, Laura served as a Judicial Law Clerk to the Honorable David C. Higgs in Ramsey County District Court, and thereafter practiced civil litigation at a downtown Minneapolis law firm. In 2015, Laura received a Master of Public Affairs degree, with a concentration in community and economic development, from Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. Laura’s coursework at Humphrey includes: policy analysis, poverty and inequality, civic participation, urban spatial and social dynamics, housing policy, qualitative and quantitative analytics, leadership, politics of public affairs, financial management and analysis, group process facilitation, and visual strategy mapping.

Laura is a certified yoga instructor and, until June 2017, served as the Chair of the Board of Directors for Young Dance, another Minnesota non-profit, which is dedicated to fostering both personal and collective expression and building community through dance. Laura remained on the Young Dance Board in an advisory capacity until December 2017. Laura has served as a Consultant to West Bank School of Music (Organizational and Strategic Review), City of Rosemount (Engaging the Public in Parks and Recreation Planning), and Little Earth of United Tribes (Pathways to Opportunity: Toward a Thriving Community).

Laura is excited about contributing to the important work of the Como Community Council and deepening her engagement with her community.