The National Immigrant Justice Center's staff is composed of dedicated human rights activists from a broad range of advocacy and legal backgrounds. Our legal services staff includes licensed attorneys, paralegals, and Board of Immigration Appeals-accredited representatives.
Staff members can be contacted by email using the following format: [first initial][last name]@immigrantjustice.org.
Olivia Abrecht is an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow with NIJC's Detention Project. Olivia graduated from New York University School of Law in 2022. During law school she was a student advocate in the Immigrant Rights Clinic, and she interned with the MacArthur Justice Center and Just Futures Law. Before law school, she worked in Chicago at the Brighton Park Neighborhood Council as a youth organizer for four years. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a B.A. in American studies.
Brianna Aceves is a paralegal with NIJC’s Asylum Project. She graduated from Princeton University in 2022 with a degree in Spanish and Portuguese with a focus in Politics. During her time at Princeton, she interned with Mabel Center for Immigrant Justice in Boston and wrote her Senior Thesis on the criminalization of asylum seekers in the United States during the Trump and Biden administrations.
Melannie Agaton is a paralegal with the Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois at Chicago Honors College in 2024 with a B.A in political science and a concentration in law and courts. Melannie began serving immigrant communities throughout her time in college as an intern assisting with asylum applications for the Childrens Legal Center and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth’s office alongside the immigration outreach and casework team. She also served as a research assistant at UIC helping to analyze the impacts of DHS and border security on indigenous borderland communities and as a student educator at UIC’s Latino Cultural Center helping to lead workshops educating the community on various social justice issues related to migration/immigration and environmental justice. Melannie’s passion for working with immigrant communities was ignited by her upbringing and hometown where she became inspired to use her education as an opportunity to serve others and she has since dedicated her efforts towards activism, policy reform, and directly working with those most impacted by the immigration system.
Lizeth Aguilar is a paralegal in NIJC’s Indianapolis office where she works on the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project, Asylum Project, and Immigrant Legal Defense teams. She graduated magna cum laude from Indiana University-Bloomington in 2021 with a BA in Sociology, where she did research on the effect of gender and class on assimilation in the U.S. among second generation Mexican-Americans. During undergrad, she volunteered as a Spanish interpreter/translator for different organizations and interned at Exodus Refugee Immigration in Indianapolis. As an Indianapolis native and a daughter of Mexican immigrants, she is passionate about making immigration legal services more accessible for her community.
Michele Amatangelo is the resource development director. Michele previously served as a Sudan Program manager at USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives in Washington, D.C. Prior to USAID, she spent a number of years in the private sector and also served as an economic development volunteer in the Peace Corps in Honduras. She received a bachelor of science in finance from Boston College and an master's of science in foreign service with a certificate in refugee and humanitarian emergencies from Georgetown University.
Laisha Arellano is a recent graduate of Goshen College. She is happy and excited to be part of our Goshen office at NIJC as a paralegal. Laisha interned at NIJC while obtaining her degree in Criminal Justice. She minored in Business and Prelaw.
Daniela Paz-Arnal is a paralegal with NIJC’s Asylum Project. She graduated with honors in May 2024 from New York University Gallatin School of Individualized Study with a concentration in “The Evolution of Race and Gender Theories.” Prior to working at NIJC, she interned with the Immigration Team at Make The Road New York. Daniela’s Bolivian background plays a large role in her passion for immigration advocacy.
Erika Asgeirsson is a supervising attorney with NIJC’s Counter-Trafficking Project, and previously served as an EJW/CVJC fellow with NIJC. She provides direct representation and victims’ rights advocacy to survivors of human trafficking, and conducts outreach and training to improve early identification of trafficking survivors. Prior to joining NIJC, Erika was a legal fellow at Human Rights First, where she advocated for policies to combat hate crime. Before law school, she served as a community health development volunteer in the Peace Corps in Burkina Faso. She earned her J.D. from New York University School of Law and her B.A. from the George Washington University. She is licensed to practice law in New York.
Brianda Avila is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Brianda graduated from Northeastern Illinois University with a bachelor’s in Human Resource Development with a double minor in Communication and Management. Prior joining NIJC, Brianda worked for 5 years with immigrant families and children in a Non-profit school that support families and their children thrive in education, workplace and life. She has volunteer with different organizations around her community advocating for immigrant resources. As a leader of Albany Park Community, she participated in town hold assembles informing the community about what Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals is. She has also volunteered at her community church to teach adult people the use of new technology tools such as basic computer use skills, Google Apps, and Zoom App. The most recent organization she has volunteered for is Chicago Cares.
Samantha Barth is a Pro Bono Data Coordinator at the NIJC and an Avodah Corps Member. Prior to joining NIJC, she worked in media planning at an agency, planning and executing advertising campaigns for TV entertainment clients. She is excited to be pivoting out of marketing, and into immigrant rights and the legal field. She holds a B.A. in Sociology and Economics from Connecticut College.
Mara Weaver Boshart is a legal supervisor on NIJC’s Asylum team. As a DOJ fully accredited representative she works with the Immigration Court Help Desk, providing orientation and limited appearance services for unrepresented non-detained individuals and families in removal proceedings, including those in the Asylum Merits Interview process. She has experience representing individuals seeking both humanitarian and family-based forms of immigration relief. Mara has lived and worked with migrants in Mexico City and studied in Peru. Mara holds a Master of Divinity in History, Theology, and Ethics from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary and a B.A. in History and Secondary Education, with a minor in Spanish, from Goshen College.
Jess Hunter-Bowman is a senior attorney in NIJC's Goshen, Indiana office. He provides direct representation to asylum-seekers, victims of crime and human trafficking, and individuals in removal proceedings. Jess also litigates immigration cases in federal court. He previously served as a Skadden Fellow at NIJC. Before joining NIJC, Jess clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Robert L. Miller, Jr. Prior to law school, he worked on human rights and U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, including ten years based in Guatemala, Mexico, and Colombia. Jess is licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Geoff Cebula is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Asylum Project. Before joining NIJC, he worked as an immigration and criminal defense attorney with the Monterrosa Law Group in South Bend, Indiana. As a law student, Geoff interned with the NIJC Goshen office, the Monterrosa Law Group, and Kurzban Kurzban Tetzeli and Pratt, and represented tenants with the Notre Dame Economic Justice Clinic. He is licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Laura Cholula is a staff attorney with the Immigrant Children's Protection Project. She earned her J.D. from Northern Illinois University College of Law and holds a B.S. in political science, with a minor in Latino & Latin American Studies, also from Northern Illinois University. Before joining NIJC, Laura served as an IJC Katzmann Fellow at the Advocates for Human Rights in Minneapolis. There, she specialized in representing children and adults in defensive and affirmative asylum cases, BIA appeals, T-visa applications, and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status applications. During her college years, Laura actively participated in local and statewide efforts advocating for immigrant rights in Illinois.
Lisa Chun is a senior attorney with NIJC’s Detention Project. Lisa began her legal career in nonprofit organizations in North Carolina. She worked on prisoners’ rights cases, including removal defense for incarcerated noncitizens, as a staff attorney at North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, and immigration cases as a managing attorney at the North Carolina Justice Center. Prior to joining the NIJC, Lisa worked in private practice specializing in the intersection of immigration consequences of criminal convictions and other complex immigration-law related litigation in administrative and judicial proceedings. She received her Juris Doctorate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2003 and her Bachelor of Art’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1998.
Jennifer Churay is a Schreiber Fellow and staff attorney with NIJC's asylum project. She graduated from Michigan State University College of Law, summa cum laude, and she received her undergraduate degree from Grand Valley State University with double majors in political science and Spanish. During her time in law school, Jen participated in the MSU Immigration Law Clinic and was an Articles Editor for the MSU International Law Review. Prior to law school, Jen also worked at Migrant Legal Aid in Grand Rapids, MI as a legal assistant, helping migrant and seasonal farmworkers with employment law and immigration law cases. Jen is licensed to practice law in Michigan.
Peter Claassen is a legal supervisor with the Asylum, Immigrant Legal Defense, and Immigrant Children's Protection Project at NIJC's Goshen, Indiana office. Peter graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he participated in the Immigration Clinic and interned at Jewish Family & Community Services and the Community Justice Project. Prior to law school, Peter worked as a BIA accredited representative at RAICES in San Antonio, TX in their Unaccompanied Immigrant Children's program, and at the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic in Indianapolis, IN. He is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania.
Solomon Collins is the digital communications and graphic design specialist. He graduated from Loyola University Chicago where he majored in Economics, International Studies and Multimedia Journalism while volunteering as a peer mentor for first-generation and DACA students. He also formed a single-member LLC to provide media production services to organizations like StartUp Health, Ignatian Volunteer Corps and local small business owners. Solomon also volunteers as a podcast producer to help budding nonprofit brands and entrepreneurs.
Colleen Cowgill is a senior litigation attorney with NIJC’s San Diego Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Colleen was the pro bono coordinator for the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network’s (RMIAN’s) detention program. In this role, she worked to connect individuals in immigration detention with no cost representation, while also providing mentorship and other support. Previously, Colleen worked at Catholic Charities providing direct representation to individuals in removal proceedings in Southern California and as a fellow at UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, in Washington, DC. Colleen is a graduate of the University of California-Irvine and Cornell Law School. She is licensed to practice in California and New York.
Landon Davison is a paralegal on the PILS team, based out of Indianapolis. He is an alumnus of Indiana University, where he was engaged in Civic Leaders, Model United Nations, and riding in the Little 500 while earning his B.S. in International Studies and Portuguese. He has previously worked as a Designated School Official in international student affairs at Arizona State. While in Phoenix, he volunteered at the International Rescue Committee’s Welcome Center serving folks immediately after their release from ICE custody.
Bethany Dohman is a supervising attorney with the NIJC's Immigrant Children's Protection Project. Before joining the NIJC, she represented immigrants in the private sector in Massachusetts, Texas, and Illinois. Bethany graduated with her bachelor's degree in public justice from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Oswego. During her time at Oswego, she was a research assistant and co-publisher of an article examining the relationship between mass shootings and Presidential rhetoric. She received her J.D. from Suffolk University Law School in Boston, Massachusetts, where she participated in a family law clinic and provided legal services to survivors of domestic violence.
Morgan Drake is a staff attorney and Equal Justice Works Fellow funded by the Ebb Point Foundation. Morgan works with NIJC’s Litigation Team to provide appellate representation to clients whose cases raise due process issues. Morgan is a recent graduate of DePaul University College of Law, where, via DePaul’s International Human Rights Law Practicum, she had the privilege of co-writing and presenting an Amicus Brief to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights arguing for differentiated approaches to detention for particularly vulnerable groups across the Americas. Prior to law school, Morgan represented unaccompanied minors in front of DHS and the Chicago Asylum Office as a DOJ Accredited Representative with NIJC’s Children’s Protection Project. Morgan holds a B.A. in Anthropology and Spanish from Augustana College.
Azadeh Erfani is the director of policy at the National Immigrant Justice Center. Azadeh has worked for over a decade in immigrant and human rights defending detained migrant children and youth from deportation, advocating for survivors of gender-based violence, and leading or supporting impact litigation and policy change to advance racial justice and civil rights. Azadeh holds a B.A. from Bryn Mawr College, an M.A. from DePaul University, and a J.D. from Villanova University; she is licensed in Virginia and the District of Columbia.
Yolatli Esparza is a paralegal with the Non-Detained Kids Project. Yolatli graduated cum laude from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2022, where she double majored in Political Science and Psychology. As an undergraduate, she began working in Family Law at the Greater Chicago Legal Clinic to help provide legal assistant to low-income families, and later was given the opportunity to work as Congressional Intern at the Office of Senator Ricard J. Durbin.
Vanessa Esparza-López is a managing attorney with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project, where she represents individuals before the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of State, and U.S. Department of Justice. Vanessa is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), where she currently serves on the Chicago AILA District Director Liaison committee. She obtained her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law in 2009 and her Bachelor of Arts with honors in International Studies from DePaul University in 2006. During law school, Vanessa was the cofounder of a new student group, the Society for Asylum & Immigration Law.
David Faherty is a supervising attorney with NIJC's Detention Project. He provides legal representation to detained immigrants in removal proceedings before the Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals. As part of NIJC’s Defender Initiative Program, Dave advises federal and state public defenders on the immigration consequences of criminal convictions. Dave previously worked as a staff attorney at the Board of Immigration Appeals and the Chicago Immigration Court. Before law school, he worked at the Open Society Foundations and was a teaching fellow in Malaysia with Princeton-in-Asia. Dave graduated from Dartmouth College and the University of Maine School of Law and is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Jherlly Acosta Fecher is a paralegal with NIJC's Goshen, Indiana office. At her current role, she provides aid to the Asylum Project and ILD team. Jherlly attended Law School at UNMSM in Lima, Peru, where she was born. In 2015, she moved to the United States to be with her now husband, which has helped her understand the struggle of being an immigrant as she learned to navigate the laws and processes of immigration herself. Previously to join NIJC, Jherlly worked for La Casa de Amistad in South Bend, IN as an immigration counselor and accredited representative.
Mark Feldman is a senior litigation attorney with NIJC’s Federal Litigation Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Mark was a senior attorney at the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights Coalition, where he represented detained individuals with serious mental illness through the National Qualified Representative Program (NQRP), and managed his program’s appeals before the BIA. Previously, Mark was a fellow at the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama, where he represented people sentenced to death in Alabama, and people sentenced to life without parole as children throughout the South. Before EJI, Mark clerked for U.S. District Court judges Jesus Bernal of the Central District of California, and Robert P. Patterson, Jr. of the Southern District of New York. Mark is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Stanford Law School and is licensed in California.
Mark Fleming is the associate director of NIJC's Federal Litigation Project. Mr. Fleming focuses on strategic litigation and public policy related to immigration enforcement and detention. He has provided technical expertise in the drafting and passage of multiple immigration “sanctuary laws” nationwide, as well as laws that limit local governments and private prison companies from contracting to perform immigration detention. NIJC’s work on enforcement issues was recognized with the 2014 Daniel Levy Award of the National Immigration Project. Mr. Fleming has been quoted in various national media outlets and appeared in a PBS FRONTLINE documentary on ICE enforcement and detention.
Jesse Franzblau is the senior policy analyst for NIJC's D.C.-based Policy Team. He works on NIJC's Transparency and Human Rights Project and conducts investigative research on human rights abuses at the U.S.-Mexico border. Previously, Jesse worked at Open the Government, directing the FOIA projects and specializing in open government laws to increase access to information on immigration policies, and has published articles with Al Jazeera, The Nation, The Intercept, Truthout, Huffington Post, Michigan Journal of Public Affairs, Proceso (MX), the Columbia Human Rights Law Review, and other outlets. He holds an MPP from the University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.
Aneesha Gandhi is the associate director of NIJC's Protection-Based Relief Project, where she oversees both NIJC’s Asylum Project and LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative. She has led NIJC’s LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative since 2019 and been part of that project since 2013. Apart from overseeing NIJC’s protection-based projects, she provides representation to noncitizens seeking asylum, and other types of immigration relief before USCIS, the Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals and advises pro bono attorneys representing asylum seekers through NIJC. Prior to joining NIJC, Aneesha was a legal fellow at the Diocese of Kalamazoo, Immigration Assistance Program. During law school, she interned for NIJC, the New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice, the Greater Boston Legal Services' Immigration Unit, and the Vera Institute. She holds a B.A. from Smith College and a J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law. Aneesha is licensed in Michigan.
Brenda Garcia is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Brenda spent two years with Catholic Charities of Central Florida where she was an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow. She handled affirmative and defensive immigration cases. Brenda graduated from Grand Valley State University and Michigan State University College of Law, and is licensed in Michigan.
Francisco Garcia serves as a paralegal within the Detention Project at the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC). He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science with a minor in Hispanic Studies, graduating with honors from Oberlin College, where he was a recipient of the Posse Scholarship program. At El Centro de Servicos Sociales, he assumed board responsibilities for grant writing and fundraising initiatives, and also volunteered as a class instructor. Francisco pursued internships during his academic breaks, supporting Congressman Chuy Garcia in both his Washington, D.C. office and his district offices in Chicago.
Rachel Geissler is a supervising attorney on the Children’s Protection Project in the Goshen office, and was previously a paralegal on the Immigrant Legal Defense project in the Chicago office. Rachel holds a B.A. from Indiana University Bloomington and graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law. Prior to rejoining NIJC, Rachel clerked for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina and practiced immigration law at a small private firm in Durham, NC. Rachel is licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Mary Georgevich is a senior litigation attorney with NIJC’s Federal Litigation Project. Mary is also an adjunct clinical professor with the Binger Center for New Americans at the University of Minnesota. Prior to joining NIJC, Mary was an attorney and Equal Justice Works Fellow at the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, where she represented Somali individuals who were detained in ICE custody or at risk of detention by ICE. Before ILCM, Mary clerked for Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Anne K. McKeig. Mary is a graduate of Santa Clara University and the University of Minnesota School of Law and is licensed in Minnesota. And prior to attending law school, Mary worked as a paralegal and accredited representative with NIJC’s LGBT Immigrant Rights Project and Immigrant Children’s Protection Project.
Elizabeth Gibson is the Managing Attorney for Capacity Building and Mentorship at the National Immigrant Justice Center. She previously served as Senior Staff Attorney/Coordinating Attorney at the New York Legal Assistance Group, was an Immigrant Justice Corps fellow, clerked at the New York Immigration Court, and worked at the Open Society Justice Initiative, the American Civil Liberties Union, the International Federation of the Red Cross, UNHCR, and the U.S. Departments of Justice, Treasury, and State. She received her J.D. and Certificate in Refugee and Humanitarian Emergencies from Georgetown Law. Before law school, Elizabeth worked as a newspaper reporter, and she has a B.S. and M.S. from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. She is admitted to practice law in New York and Illinois.
Allison Gilroy is an Immigrant Justice Fellow with the NIJC Children’s Protection Project. She graduated from Tulane University School of Law, where she spent a semester at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina. Along with her JD, she received a certificate in International and Comparative Law. During law school, Allison worked at CrescentCare, where she helped medically-complex minors gain Special Immigrant-Juvenile Status (SIJS), and at Catholic Charities, where she worked with asylees, minors seeking SIJS, and others seeking forms of humanitarian relief. She is licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Abigail Ginzburg is a project manager with NIJC’s Detention Unit. She previously served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kosovo and an AmeriCorps VISTA in Utah’s Refugee Services Office. She holds a BA in Russian Studies from the University of Chicago and an MGA in Refugee and Immigration Policy from the Keough School of Global Affairs.
Alejandro Gomez is the Social Services Coordinator with the NIJC Detention project. Before Joining NIJC he was a Community Health Worker for Esperanza Health Centers on the south side of Chicago. Before Esperanza, he studied at the University of Illinois at Chicago and received his B.A in Integrated Health Studies.
Andrea Gomez Paz is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Andrea graduated from Northeastern Illinois University with a bachelor’s in Latino/Latin American studies and a minor in Sociology. As an undergraduate, she interned at NIJC with the Detention Project and did volunteer work at Borderlinks in Tucson, Arizona. Immigration has always played an important role in Andrea’s life, due to her parents and brothers being Guatemalan immigrants who won their asylum case through NIJC.
Juan Gonzalez Martinez is a Schreiber Fellow with the Detention Project. Juan graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law in 2023, where he participated in various immigration related projects such as going to Texas to observe human rights abuses committed by the US government at the southern border and also helping people being bussed to Chicago by Texas’ tyrant, Greg Abbott. Before graduating law school, Juan obtained his bachelors in Sociology from Wayne State University and volunteered with various immigration organizations who advocated for immigrant rights
Katherine Gordon is a staff attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at NIJC’s Indianapolis office. Prior to joining NIJC, Katherine practiced employment law at Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP in Indianapolis, where she worked with NIJC and The Advocates for Human Rights on a variety of pro bono immigration cases. Katherine graduated from the University of Michigan Law School, where she participated in the Child Advocacy Law Clinic, Human Trafficking Clinic, and the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP). Before law school, Katherine completed a service year with Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest/AmeriCorps and then worked in case management at a Kansas City refugee resettlement agency. She earned her B.A. from the University of Notre Dame. Katherine is licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Evan Gorelick is a senior attorney with the Non-Detained Kids Team. He previously served as a staff attorney and pro bono mentor with the Florence in Phoenix, Arizona, representing unaccompanied minors from 2017 to 2021. From 2021 to 2023, he worked on NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense Project, representing noncitizens on a wide variety of cases in the Chicago area. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2017, where he concentrated on business and immigration law, as well as coaching the university taekwondo club.
Eric Grossmann is a staff attorney for NIJC’s LGBT Immigrant Rights Initiative. Eric’s interest in human rights began as an intern with the Office of the Prosecutor at the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague. Prior to joining NIJC, Eric worked in private practice representing criminal defendants and family court litigants in state and federal court. Eric received his B.A. in Political Science and Spanish from Indiana University and J.D. from New York Law School, receiving the Lung-Chu Chen Award for Excellence in the Field of Human Rights upon commencement. In 2022, Eric was honored with NIJC's Rising Star Award for his work as a pro bono attorney. He is licensed in New York.
Mike Grunenwald is NIJC's Director of Data and Systems Management. Before joining NIJC in 2019, he was a program manager at Pro Bono Net, where he led the state and national probono.net and LawHelp.org programs, working with partners from around the country on technology projects to enhance their capacity to engage and support pro bono volunteers and provide know your rights and legal referral information to vulnerable low-income communities. Prior to Pro Bono Net, Mike was the lead on technology projects at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center. He received a B.A. summa cum laude in political science and philosophy from the University of Dayton, an M.A. in philosophy from Vanderbilt University, and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.
Cecille Harris is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Pro Bono Asylum Project. Before NIJC, she was an Assistant Attorney General with the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, assistant general counsel for an online university, and a program and volunteer manager for non-profit organizations in California, Colorado, and Ohio. Cecille received her BA from Miami University in Ohio, and her JD from Howard University School of Law, where she co-founded the Asian-Pacific American Law Students’ Association and interned with the EEOC and the Democratic National Committee. She is licensed to practice law in Ohio.
Eugene Harris (Khvatskov) is the Senior Financial Analyst at NIJC, bringing expertise in budgeting, forecasting, strategic planning, and financial reporting across diverse industries, including manufacturing, e-commerce, and technology. He specializes in optimizing operational efficiencies and leveraging technology to drive growth, playing a pivotal role in strengthening financial sustainability, advancing strategic initiatives, and enhancing data-driven decision-making. Eugene studied in the Master's Finance program at HSBC Business School in the UK, gaining valuable insights into global financial practices.
Lili Henkel is a pro bono coordinator with the Asylum Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Lili served as a University English Teaching Assistant through a Fulbright grant in Spain. During her time as an undergraduate at Occidental College, Lili interned as a law clerk for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. She has a BA in Sociology with a minor in Critical Theory and Social Justice.
Brittany Herschberger is a Legal Supervisor and a DOJ partially accredited representative in NIJC’s Goshen, Indiana office. Brittany works with the asylum team and the immigrant legal defense team in Indiana. Prior to joining NIJC, Brittany was a teacher in the Goshen area and worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica..
Michael Hoyt is a supervising attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Michael received his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law and his B.A. in international relations and history from Drake University. While in law school, Michael interned at NIJC with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project and the Asylum Project. He also participated in DePaul’s Asylum and Immigration Law Clinic. Prior to law school, Michael was a human rights accompanier with the Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA) and an AmeriCorps member with Iowa Legal Aid. He is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Diana Ibarra is a Litigation Coordinator. Before joining NIJC, she was a legal assistant for Kemspter, Corcoran, Quiceno & Lenz-Calvo, an immigration law firm. Diana primarily worked on family-based cases for consular processing. Her background during undergraduate years also involved working with non-profits such as the Illinois Innocence Project while obtaining her BA in Political Science and BA in Legal Studies.
Brandon Jaimes is a paralegal with NIJC’s Counter Trafficking Project. As an undergraduate at Stanford University, Brandon spent time working with immigrant rights groups such as the Immigration Institute of the Bay Area and Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto. In these positions Brandon assisted with intake, translation, and interpretation for immigrants seeking asylum as well as citizenship. Brandon graduated from Stanford in 2022 with a B.A. in Economics and a minor in Urban Studies.
Elizabeth Juarez is the receptionist for NIJC’s office in downtown Chicago. She provides clerical and administrative support services, facilitates scheduling of intake appointments, and manages the reception area.
Olivia Judd is the managing attorney for NIJC’s LGBTQ and asylum pro bono projects. Prior to joining NIJC, she interned with the International Refugee Assistance Project and with the International Rescue Committee. She earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota in Global Studies & French. She received her J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School, where she worked with the Immigration & Human Rights Clinic and received the 2018 Human Rights Center Award for Outstanding Contribution. She is licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois.
Marwa Jumma is a staff attorney with the Detention team. Marwa previously worked at a private firm and has extensive experience in removal defense with emphasis on Asylum, Withholding of removal and Relief under the Convention Against Torture. Marwa has successfully tried numerous cases before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), and the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2016, Marwa first came to the United States under the 100 Syrian Women, 10,000 Syrian Lives Jusoor Award, which was granted to only fifteen Syrian women to pursue their education in the U.S and Canada. Marwa earned her Bachelor’s in Law from Damascus University of Law and worked as an attorney at the prestigious law firm of Youssef Jumma with her father in Damascus, Syria where she focused her practice in civil law matters. Marwa was awarded full academic scholarships and earned both her Master’s degree in U.S International and Transnational law and Juris Doctorate degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. Marwa is licensed to practice law in the State of Illinois and is a member of the Illinois Bar Association, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Elizabeth Kalmbach Clark is a coordinator with NIJC's Federal Litigation Project. She previously worked as an Accredited Representative with NIJC's Adult Detention Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Elizabeth worked at Annunciation House, an organization that runs migrant shelters in El Paso, Texas. She holds a B.A. in international studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an M.A. in writing and publishing from DePaul University.
Stacey Kamin is a supervising attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Stacey practiced in areas including civil litigation, federal civil rights, public interest and pro-bono immigration law. Before attending law school, Stacey was a middle school teacher. She has lived in Colombia, Spain and Turkey. She graduated cum laude from California Western School of Law. Stacey is licensed to practice law in Illinois and California.
Fatima Khan is an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow with the Children's Protection Project at NIJC's Chicago office. She graduated from Harvard Law School with a LL.M. degree where she was an active participant at the Child Advocacy Clinic. She interned at the Child Protection Unit at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office, assisting prosecutors on cases of child sexual abuse and physical neglect. She has also served as a Research Assistant for the Project of Law and Applied Neuroscience at the Harvard Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy. Prior to this, Fatima served as the founder of a legal aid bureau with the goal to provide pro-bono legal representation to survivors of domestic violence.
Lisa Koop is NIJC's National Director of Legal Services. She directs NIJC's asylum project, handles federal litigation, and provides representation and supervision in deportation defense matters. Lisa specializes in litigation, policy, and direct services advocacy on behalf of immigrant survivors of gender-based violence. Lisa heads NIJC’s Indiana office and is an adjunct professor at Notre Dame Law School. Lisa graduated magna cum laude from Indiana University McKinney School of Law in 2004.
Liz Lang is a human resources/operations professional serving as NIJC’s Operations Manager. She has more than 15 years of experience in the legal industry and is passionate about employee relations, benefits, and office operations. Liz graduated from Loyola University with a major in Management and holds PHR and SHRM-CP certifications.
Michelle Lenze is an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow with the Immigrant Children's Protection Project at NIJC. Michelle graduated from the George Washington University Law School in 2023. She was a managing editor on the George Washington International Law Review, and she interned with the National Immigration Law Center, the Office on Trafficking in Persons of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Ayuda. Before law school, Michelle was a paralegal at the St. Frances Cabrini Center for Immigrant Legal Assistance of Catholic Charities of Galveston-Houston. She is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Ben Levey is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Asylum Project. During law school, he interned with The Bronx Defenders and the ACLU of Wisconsin, represented people in removal proceedings through the Immigrant Justice Clinic, and served as a Note and Comment Editor on the Wisconsin Law Review. Prior to law school, he worked for HIAS in Silver Spring, Maryland, and taught English in rural Thailand through Princeton in Asia. Ben received his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2024 and a B.A. with Honors in American Studies from Northwestern University in 2017. He is licensed to practice in Wisconsin.
Itxel Limón is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. She graduated from Lake Forest College with a bachelor's degree in Political Science and Latin American Studies, along with a minor in Legal Studies. Before joining the NIJC team, Itxel interned and worked with government officials and grassroots organizations in the Lake County area. Her passion for advocating for women and immigrant rights was ignited through these experiences. After traveling and witnessing the global need for advocacy in these areas, she found her way to the NIJC team. Through her diverse experiences, Itxel has developed strong skills in communication, marketing, public relations, and negotiation.
Isabel Conde (she/her) is a paralegal with the National Immigrant Justice Center’s (NIJC) Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Isabel graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Latin American Studies from Macalester College. She previously served as an Admissions and Engagement Advisor at Harvard University, advising educators and districts worldwide, and as a Youth Program Coordinator at Centro Tyrone Guzman, developing curricula for Latino teens. Her experience includes working as a Census Outreach Specialist at Mujeres Latinas and a Domestic Violence Intern at Mujeres Supervivientes in Spain. Fluent in English and Spanish, Isabel is dedicated to fostering inclusive environments and advocating for systemic reforms, especially for marginalized communities and unaccompanied minors in the immigration system.
Sonya Love is a fellow with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. She recently graduated from the University of Michigan, where she studied political science and Spanish. During college, Sonya interned and worked as a field organizer for several state-level political campaigns, and was a legislative intern for her local State Representative.
Ruben Loyo is the Associate Director of the NIJC Detention Project. He was formerly a senior litigation attorney with NIJC's Federal Litigation Project, and a clinical teaching fellow at Yale Law School, where he worked with students in the Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic and Immigration Legal Services Clinic. From 2012 to 2016, he was a staff attorney at the Brooklyn Defender Services in New York City, where he defended clients from deportation and detention as part of the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP), the nation’s first universal representation program for detained immigrants facing deportation. Ruben previously clerked for the Honorable Solomon Oliver, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. He is a graduate of NYU School of Law and Georgetown University, and is licensed in New York and Illinois.
Megan Lundblad is the DACA pro bono project coordinator with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Megan studied History, Spanish, Latin American Studies, and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies at Augustana College, where she received the O.F. Ander Award for the Outstanding History Student and the Louis C. Belby Award for Outstanding Achievement in Spanish. Megan previously volunteered as an English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher in the Quad Cities area and briefly served as an English as a Foreign Language teaching intern in Córdoba, Argentina.
Cynthia Macedo is a paralegal with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. She graduated from Northern Illinois University with a B.A in sociology and minor in anthropology. She previously worked as a Lead Youth Care Worker and culinary point person in the SAFEty department for unaccompanied youth for 7 years.
Rabeya Mallick is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Children's Protection Project. Rabeya received her JD from the University of Michigan Law School and her BSED in Human Development & Psychological Services with a minor in French from Northwestern University. While in law school, Rabeya participated in the Immigrant Justice Lab, the Human Trafficking Clinic, the Juvenile Justice Clinic, and the Geneva Externship Program, interning at UNHCR Headquarters in the Protection Policy & Legal Advice Section. Before law school, Rabeya supported newly arrived refugee families as the K-12 Case Manager at Heartland Alliance's Refugee & Immigrant Community Services, and she volunteered as a Child Advocate with the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights.
Jacqueline Mares is a U-Visa/VAWA Pro Bono Coordinator with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Jacqueline worked with unaccompanied children in custody under the Office of Refugee Resettlement as a Youth Care Worker then as a Family Reunification Specialist. In both these roles, Jacqueline provided care, support, reunified unaccompanied children with their family in the U.S. and assessed further placement options. She was a volunteer with Mujeres Latinas en Accion conducting intakes for new clients who suffered domestic violence. Jacqueline graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Gender & Women Studies.
Shelsea Bautista Mateo is a paralegal with NIJC's Immigrant Children's Protection Project. Shelsea received her B.A. from The University of Chicago in Comparative Human Development and graduated with Cum Laude honors. She has previous experience working in the non-profit sector and has focused her academic studies on adolescent development.
Mary Meg McCarthy is the executive director of the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), one of the nation’s leading immigrant and human rights advocacy organizations. Under Mary Meg’s leadership, NIJC has become a leading immigrant and human rights advocacy organization, contributing to national and international analysis, debate and reform of immigration law, policy, and practices. She has built a network of 1,500 pro bono attorneys who are essential to providing legal services to thousands of individuals each year. An expert in immigration law, Mary Meg has testified before Congress and is quoted often in major news outlets such as MSNBC, The New York Times, and the Chicago Tribune. Prior to joining NIJC, she practiced civil litigation and was an NIJC pro bono attorney. Earlier in her career she worked in local communities in Chile to help safeguard the rights of individuals under a dictatorship. Mary Meg has been honored with several awards including: American Constitution Society Chicago Lawyer Chapter Ruth Goldman Award (July 2015), Chicago Inn of Court 2015 Don Hubert Public Service Award, Pax Christi 2013 Teacher of Peace Award, and the Damen Award from Loyola University (June 2015).
Katie McCoy is a senior attorney with NIJC’s LGBT and Asylum projects. During law school, Katie worked in the Federal Immigration Litigation Clinic and interned with the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild. Prior to law school, she was a senior paralegal with the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project (ProBAR), where she represented detained unaccompanied and forcibly separated noncitizen children. Katie graduated from St. Olaf College with a B.A. and the University of Minnesota Law School with a J.D. She is licensed to practice in Illinois.
Alex McGriff is a senior attorney with NIJC’s asylum project. Prior to joining NIJC, Alex was an Immigration Justice Corps Fellow at Prisoners’ Legal Services of New York where he represented incarcerated New Yorkers facing deportation. During law school, Alex worked in the Greater Boston Legal Services asylum clinic and in the Criminal Justice Institute public defense clinic. Alex spent summers interning at Orleans Public Defenders in Louisiana and in the Bronx Defenders Immigration Practice. Alex graduated from Rhodes College in Memphis with a B.A. and Harvard Law School with a J.D. and is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Dominique Mejia is a supervising attorney on the Non-Detained Kids Project, focusing on serving unaccompanied immigrant children and other vulnerable immigrant youth. Before attending law school, she worked as a paralegal and Department of Justice Accredited Representative with NIJC’s Asylum project, representing clients in front of the Chicago Asylum office and USCIS. Dominique holds a B.A. in Sociology from Northwestern University and a J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. While in undergrad, Dominique worked at the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).
Andrea Mendez is a staff attorney with NIJC’s asylum team in the Recent Arrivals Project. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law with a Certificate in Public Interest. Before attending law school, Andrea was employed as an immigration paralegal where she worked on family petitions and removal defense cases. During law school, she participated in Loyola’s Immigration Practicum and worked at various non-profits in their immigration teams, where she informed agricultural workers on H-2A visas of their rights and helped organize pro-se asylum clinics. She holds a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from The University of Texas at Austin.
Cecilia Mendoza is a Legal Supervisor with NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense (ILD) project and is an Accredited Representative (partial) through the Department of Justice. She also manages the Naturalization Pro Bono Project. Previously, Cecilia was the compliance and implementation specialist for the City Legal Protection Fund within the ILD project. Prior to joining NIJC, she was the immigration services coordinator and a DOJ Accredited Representative with Family Focus Nuestra Familia in Cicero, Illinois. She earned her Master's in Public Policy from the School of Public Service at DePaul University and earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, with minors in Political Science and Hispanic Studies, from Illinois Wesleyan University.
Vivian Millan is a senior attorney with NIJC’s Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Prior to joining NIJC, she represented clients in dissolution of marriage and parentage cases in the Cook County Domestic Relations Division, was a paralegal with Orlando Center for Justice where she worked with victims of domestic violence on VAWA cases and with individuals seeking asylum, and was a legal assistant at a personal injury firm. Vivian graduated from the University of Central Florida with a bachelor’s degree in legal studies. She received her J.D. from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, where she participated in the school’s family law clinic. Vivian is licensed to practice in Illinois.
Allison Morcus is a Notre Dame Bank of America Foundation Fellow with NIJC's Non-Detained Kids Project. Her fellowship is a school-based immigration project, focused on representing youth in Chicago schools who are seeking asylum and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status. Prior to joining NIJC, Ally graduated magna cum laude from Notre Dame Law School. Ally holds a B.A. in Political Science and Spanish from the University of Notre Dame.
Andrea Moya is a paralegal in the Goshen office, working for the Asylum Project and the Immigrant Legal Defense team. Andrea has worked in the areas of peacebuilding and political advocacy in her home country of Colombia. She has also worked as a professor at the undergraduate and graduate level teaching courses in the fields of sociology, peacebuilding, and psychology. Andrea holds a BA in Sociology, a BS in Social Work, and an MA in Conflict Transformation.
Abigail Nyberg is an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. Abigail graduated from New York University School of Law in 2023. During law school, Abigail served as the co-chair of the Immigrant Rights Project, participated in the Immigrant Defense Clinic, and completed internships with Catholic Charities, the Legal Aid Society, Oasis Legal Services, and CLINIC. Prior to law school, Abigail served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in South Africa, teaching English to students from grades five to seven, and worked as a legal assistant with a boutique immigration law firm in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Bladimir Orduno Flores is a paralegal with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Bladimir graduated from Pomona College with a Spanish major. His work experience includes an internship with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, serving as Outreach Coordinator and Educator for the Alliance of Filipinos for Immigrant Rights and Empowerment, and working as a senior paralegal at Brooklyn Defender Services. He currently aspires to go to law school. Bladimir is committed to providing compassionate, high-quality services to immigrant communities in Chicago and beyond.
Brianna Ortega is a paralegal with NIJC's Asylum Project. She graduated summa cum laude from Loyola University Chicago in 2020 with a BA in Global and International Studies and a triple minor in Anthropology, European Studies, and Italian Language and Literature. During her time at Loyola, she interned for NIJC on the Detention Project for two semesters. Prior to joining NIJC as a paralegal, Brianna served as the Project Coordinator for “Proyecto de Esperanza: Mapa Solidaridad” or “Project of Hope: Solidarity Map” which was a project funded by the National Science Foundation. The main purpose of the project was to create a digital map tool of the United States and Mexico full of useful resources, such as medical, housing, and legal aid, for migrants, returnees, and deportees to utilize.
Stephanie Alejandra Ortega is a Legal Supervisor with NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense (ILD) project. Prior to joining NIJC, Steph was a Legal Supervisor at Kempster, Corcoran, Quiceno & Lenz-Calvo, where she managed the Removal Defense, Asylum, DACA, TPS, and DALE teams. She was formerly a DOJ Accredited Representative at Catholic Charities of Chicago; she assisted noncitizens with family-based and humanitarian relief, including relief for Afghans resettled through Operations Allies Welcome. She obtained her B.A. in Comparative Human Development from The University of Chicago. She is the daughter of Peruvian immigrants.
Jessica Oswald is a Schreiber Fellow with NIJC's Counter-Trafficking Project. Jessica graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2023. She was a clinical law student in the Immigrant Justice Clinic and interned with Legal Action of Wisconsin's Farmworker Project. She earned her B.S. in environmental geography with minors in Spanish and political science from Ohio University. She is licensed to practice law in Wisconsin and Illinois.
Laura Pachon is a project coordinator for the Recent Arrivals Project in the Asylum team. Laura studied at Rollins College where she received her B.A. in International Relations with a minor in Latin American and Caribbean Studies. She then continued her education and received her Master's of Science degree in Refugee and Forced Migration at DePaul University. Prior to working at NIJC Laura has worked in human rights advocacy with her undergraduate Amnesty International student organization; and supporting the Center for Latino Research and the Latin American & Latino Studies Department at DePaul.
David Ruiz-Padilla is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Detention Project. David received his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law and a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from the Christian Brothers University in Memphis, Tennessee. While in law school, David interned with NIJC’s Detention Project and the Cook County’s Public Defender’s Office. He also participated in DePaul’s Asylum & Immigration Law Clinic. He is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Fernando Hernandez Paredes is a staff attorney with NIJC’s Asylum Project with experience in criminal defense, and civil litigation. He graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. During his time there, he served as the Latinx Law Student Association President and co-founded the Castillo Scholars Mentorship Program that aims to help people of color, students of limited means, and first generation law students achieve their dream of law school admissions. He is licensed to practice law in Illinois and Minnesota.
Ruthie Pebror is a staff attorney with the Asylum and Immigrant Legal Defense Projects at NIJC’s Indianapolis office. Before joining NIJC, Ruthie was a staff attorney at Legal Services in Indiana and Vermont, where she represented tenants facing eviction and termination from subsidized housing. She also served in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica. Ruthie graduated from Stanford Law School and Dartmouth College, and is licensed to practice in Indiana, Illinois, and Vermont.
Sandra Perez-Gonzalez is the Immigration Court Helpdesk (ICH) Coordinator within NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Prior to joining NIJC, Sandra earned her MSW from the University of Michigan School of Social Work. During her time there, she was a Program Coordinator for the Undocumented Student Initiatives Team at the Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives (OAMI) and served at the Office of State Senator Stephanie Chang. She holds a B.A. in Psychology and Spanish with a minor in Latina/o Studies from the University of Michigan College of LSA. Sandra was born in Mexico and was involved in the Student Community of Progressive Empowerment (SCOPE) to support and empower undocumented students on campus.
Nina Pierce is a paralegal with Immigrant Legal Defense. She graduated in 2024 from the University of Illinois Champaign/Urbana with undergraduate degrees in Sociocultural and Linguistic Anthropology and Spanish. During her senior year, she volunteered at The Immigration Project (TIP), a nonprofit organization that provides legal and social services to the local immigrant population in Champaign, Illinois. Additionally, she volunteered at an extension office of the University of Illinois called Integrated Health Disparities which works to close gaps in healthcare access among local populations of Latinx immigrants by developing programs that encourage healthy lifestyle choices in an accessible manner.
Lenin M. Plazas is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. He studied political science and history at DePaul University and graduated in 2022, becoming the first member of his family to receive a college education. Before coming to NIJC, he interned for U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth and was a representative for Mandate Democracy.
Fernanda Ponce is NIJC's Executive Coordinator. She supports the back operations of the organization, ensuring that processes run smoothly and efficiently. Prior to joining NIJC full-time, Fernanda was an intern for the Recent Arrivals program. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in Race, Diaspora, and Indigeneity. When she’s not running from one event to another across the city, you can find her planning her next international trip.
Lauren Preputnik is the grants manager at the National Immigrant Justice Center. Prior to joining NIJC, she spent nearly three years at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Human Rights Initiative, where she published research and analysis on timely foreign policy issues, including business and human rights, human trafficking, migrant rights, and responding to egregious human rights abuses. Before joining CSIS, she spent four years as the senior program coordinator for the German Marshall Fund (GMF) Cities program and one year as a program assistant on the Middle East and North Africa team at the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE). Lauren holds a master of arts in democracy and governance from Georgetown University and a bachelor of arts in political science from Illinois Wesleyan University.
Amelia Quardokus is a Staff Attorney with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Amelia is originally from Michigan, where she graduated from Grand Valley State University with a B.B.A. in International Business and Marketing and a minor in Spanish. Amelia worked as a paralegal at an immigration law firm for two years before attending law school. In 2023 she graduated from the University of Illinois College of Law. After graduation and prior to joining NIJC, Amelia worked as a judicial law clerk at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She is licensed in Michigan.
Julian Quiroga-Cubillos is a Schreiber fellow with NIJC’s Legal Defense Project. Julian holds a J.D. from Loyola University Chicago School of Law and a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Michigan State University. During his time in law school, Julian was selected as a Rodin Social Justice Fellow for the Curt and Linda Rodin Center, he participated in Loyola’s Immigration practicum and worked at multiple non-profits with a focus on immigration.
Kate Ramos is a managing attorney with NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense Project and City Legal Protection Fund. Kate previously worked as an associate attorney for five years with a private immigration law firm. She obtained her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law in 2011 and her B.A. in history and Spanish from the University of Notre Dame. During law school, she interned with NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense Project and participated in the DePaul University Asylum and Immigration Law Clinic. Kate is licensed in the state of Illinois.
Diana Rashid is a managing attorney working with NIJC’s Detention Project. She provides legal representation to detained immigrants in removal proceedings before the Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals. As part of NIJC’s Defender Initiative Program, Diana advises federal and state public defenders on the immigration consequences of criminal convictions. Diana holds a B.A. in economics and political science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and obtained her J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. Diana is licensed to practice law in the state of Illinois.
Natasha Reifenberg is a Mary A. McCarthy Fellow with NIJC’s Federal Litigation Project. She graduated from Yale Law School in 2024, where she was a member of the Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic, the Foreclosure Clinic, and the Evictions Clinic. She also served as an editor for the Yale Law Journal. Prior to law school, she worked as a paralegal with NIJC’s Asylum Project, Fulbright Scholar in Chile, reproductive health researcher in El Salvador, and domestic violence caseworker in Indiana.
Julie Anne Rich is a senior attorney for NIJC’s pro bono Asylum Team. For many years she served as a Supreme Court Commissioner for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Prior to that she was in private practice at Dorsey & Whitney LLP in Minneapolis, and clerked for the Honorable Edward C. Stringer, Minnesota Supreme Court. She received her J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of Minnesota Law School, where she was an articles editor for the Journal of Law & Inequality. She received a B.S. in Geology & Geophysics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Julie is admitted to practice law in Minnesota (inactive), Wisconsin and Iowa.
Hillary Richardson is the Managing Attorney of NIJC’s Non-Detained Kids Project, focused on serving unaccompanied immigrant children and other vulnerable immigrant youth. Prior to joining NIJC, Hillary worked in family law at the Legal Assistance Foundation’s Children and Families Practice Group, and served as a staff attorney at the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project in Tacoma, Washington, where she provided legal orientation and removal defense for detained adults. Before attending law school, she worked as a paralegal and BIA accredited representative with NIJC’s Adult Detention project. Hillary holds a B.A. from Earlham College and a J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. She is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Rebecca Ries-Roncalli is a DOJ Accredited Representative and DACA pro bono coordinator with the Immigrant Legal Defense project. Rebecca completed her Masters in Social Science from the University of Chicago in 2021, where she specialized in the intersection of gender, religion, and art through Italian Renaissance vernacular poetry. Previously she studied history and Italian at John Carrol University, where she received the Dr. Marian Morton Woman Historians of Greater Cleveland Award in 2018. Rebecca has also volunteered with organizations such as Legal Aid, Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry’s homeless shelter, and US Together refugee resettlement agency.
Mary Roche is the compliance and coordination supervisor for NIJC's Children's Protection Project. Previously, she worked with NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense Project as a BIA-Accredited Representative. Mary graduated with honors from Tulane University in 2007 with a bachelor of arts in Latin American studies and art history. Before coming to NIJC, Mary taught ESL at Poder Learning Center in Chicago. She has also studied and taught in Spain and worked as a citizenship volunteer.
Lisiann Rodriguez is a senior attorney with NIJC’s asylum team and leads NIJC’s Recent Arrivals Project. She works closely with other NIJC projects, Chicago legal service organizations, the city, and the state to ensure legal services are best tailored to the ever-changing needs of our new neighbors. Lisiann holds a J.D. from University of Illinois at Chicago Law School and a B.A. in Medical Humanities from Baylor University. While in law school, she cultivated a passion for human rights legal work in her experiences as an intern at the Cook County Public Defender’s Post Convictions office, a clinician at the UIC Law School Human Rights Clinic, and a law clerk at an immigration firm in Florida. Lisiann is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Raf Rodriguez (he/him) is a paralegal within NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Raf graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2023, where he double majored in Latin American Studies and Environmental Analysis. As an undergraduate, Raf interned at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington, DC and was a Student Consultant at Washington University’s Environmental Law Clinic. Upon graduating, Raf worked at New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) as the sole paralegal on the Public Housing Justice Project, providing eviction defense to residents of NYCHA, North America’s largest public housing authority. Raf is the youngest son of two Mexican immigrants turned US citizens.
Charles Roth is National Immigrant Justice Center's director of appellate litigation. He has appeared in hundreds of appellate matters resulting in more than 120 published Court of Appeals decisions, and has overseen the filing of dozens of amicus briefs at the Supreme Court and the Courts of Appeals. He was counsel of record in Ali v. Achim, 552 U.S. 1085 (2007), and was on the counsel teams in Chaidez v. United States, 568 U.S. 342 (2013) and Dep’t of State v. Munoz, 144 S.Ct. 1812 (2024). NIJC commonly litigates in collaboration with pro bono law firms, in which case he appears as co-counsel in the case and provides technical and legal support. He is also the longtime update editor for the U.S. Citizenship and Naturalization Handbook.
Graciela Ruiz is a paralegal with the Immigrant Legal Defense project. She graduated from Brown University with a double major in History and International and Public Affairs. During her undergraduate years, she participated in the Student Clinic for Immigrant Justice and assisted attorneys in preparing asylum applications. She also interned for a private immigration firm in Providence and worked with Ascend Justice in Chicago.
Monica Saavedra is a paralegal with the Adult Detention Project. Monica graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a dual bachelor’s degree in Global Studies and Spanish. There, Monica volunteered with La Linea – an organization that helps connect the immigrant community with no cost/low cost services in the area. Monica was inspired to attend law school after volunteering with the immigrant community in Champaign County. Monica attended DePaul University College of Law and graduated in 2022 with a juris doctor.
Theodora (Dora) Saclarides is a Project Coordinator with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at the National Immigrant Justice Center. She has a B.A and M.A. in Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American Studies from Vanderbilt University. In 2016 Dora was a Fulbright fellow in Brazil and worked with the U.S. Department of State's advising center EducationUSA. Upon her return to the United States, she initiated Tennessee’s first free Spanish Adult Education Program at the YWCA of Nashville and Middle Tennessee. Prior to her work at NIJC, Dora interned as a researcher at the Brazil Institute in Washington D.C. where she published articles on education reform, deforestation, and emerging political leaders in Brazil. Dora has been at NIJC since 2018 and continues to teach continuing education classes through the Borough of Manhattan Community Colleges.
Niki Iman Saleh is a Gallogly Family Foundation Fellow with NIJC's Detention Project, where she is working on a language access project. Niki graduated from the American University Washington College of Law (WCL) in May 2023. Throughout law school, she was a student attorney at WCL's Immigrant Justice Clinic and International Human Rights Clinic, and she interned at the National Immigrant Law Center and the Garfield Law Group. Prior to law school she graduated with her BA in Political Science from the University of Washington. As the daughter of Iranian immigrants herself, Niki is a passionate advocate for upholding, reforming, and protecting immigrant rights.
Charlotte Sall is the Pro Bono Manager, working to engage law firm and corporate partners to expand NIJC's impact. Before joining NIJC, she was the Pro Bono & Projects Manager at the International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP), where she mobilized law students and attorneys to provide legal services to refugees and other displaced people. Charlotte graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University and has a Master's in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago, where she focused on global development.
Catalina Salley, NIJC’s Chief Operating Officer, oversees NIJC’s operations, including information technology, human resources, and finances. Ms. Salley has over 20 years of leadership experience in in the non-profit sector in addition 12 years in the corporate sector in cable television and as a commodities broker. Her roles have included COO, VP of Finance and Technology and CFO. She has been a leader in strategic planning, anti-racism initiatives and digital transformation at NIJC and other organizations. She is a creative and entrepreneurial leader who challenges people to think outside their comfort zones to address opportunities, change and business challenges. She has a proven ability to establish strategic direction and execute on agreed upon plans while managing accountability to budgets and external and internal commitments. Ms. Salley is a member of CFORT (CFO Round Table). She was the former chairperson of the National Health Council CFO Affinity Group, as well as former member of NAMIC (National Association of Minorities in Cable), a Walter Kaitz Fellow and was selected as a MacArthur Grantee Organizational Cohort 2018-2019 while with Mikva Challenge. Ms. Salley is magna cum laude graduate of Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota with a Bachelor of Arts majoring French and International Relations.
Estefany Sanabria is a Schreiber Fellow and Staff Attorney with NIJC’s In-House Asylum team. She graduated from DePaul University College of Law, and she received a Certificate in Public Interest Law. She also received her undergraduate degree from DePaul University with a major in Economics and minor in Commercial Spanish. During her time in law school, Estefany participated in DePaul University’s Asylum and Immigration Legal Clinic. She was also on the student board for both the Latino Law Student Association and the Society for Asylum & Immigration Law.
Meghan Scholnick is a staff attorney for the Immigrant Children's Protection Project at NIJC. Meghan received a B.S. in International Studies with a concentration in Latin America from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She also holds a Master of Arts in Teaching with Certification from Aurora University with endorsements in English as a Second Language and Bilingual Education from National Louis University. She graduated magna cum laude from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. While a law student, Meghan interned at NIJC with the Detention Project and participated in the Loyola Immigration Practicum at the U.S. - Mexico border. Additionally, Meghan worked on Special Immigrant Juvenile Status cases at Chicago Volunteer Legal Services.
Chi Mai Seebert is a supervising attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. She earned her bachelor’s degree in law from Hanoi Law University in Vietnam, passed the Vietnam's bar and worked as an associate at an international law firm in Vietnam before moving to the United States. Chi graduated from the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign-Urbana. Before joining NIJC, she served as a staff attorney at the Immigration Project in Champaign and subsequently represented immigrants in the private sector for firms in Illinois, California, and Florida. She is licensed to practice law in New York.
Eva Shapiro is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. She studied political science and Spanish at UC Berkeley. Before coming to NIJC, she worked helping people become citizens in her hometown of Washington, DC.
Anna Sheridan is a pro bono coordinator with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project. Previously, Anna worked as a paralegal with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project, and as a paralegal for the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center. She received her B.A. in International Economics with Spanish from the University of Notre Dame. While in college, Anna volunteered as an ESL teacher with La Casa de Amistad and worked as a legal assistant for a law firm that specialized in immigration, criminal defense, and family law.
Marie Silver is managing attorney for the Immigrant Children's Protection Project at NIJC. The project provides free legal services and representation to unaccompanied immigrant children, both detained and released, in their removal proceedings and applications for status. Marie co-manages the project and continues to represent unaccompanied children in applications for asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, T visa applications, and more. Marie received a B.S. in Spanish and a B.A. in communications from Northwestern University, and she graduated magna cum laude from DePaul University College of Law. While a law student, Marie interned at NIJC with the Immigrant Legal Defense Project, and at the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights. She also participated in the DePaul Asylum and Immigration Clinic and the Human Rights Practicum in Chiapas, Mexico.
Morgan Simon is a paralegal with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. She graduated with honors from the University of Chicago in 2023 with a BA in Public Policy and a specialization in Health and the Environment. During her undergraduate career, she taught swim lessons for the local community, coached a swim team, and was a four-year member of the varsity swim team. She wrote her thesis on wildfire prevention policy in the Front Range, and studied with an interest in human rights from a health and environment perspective.
Amanda Crews Slezak is the managing attorney of NIJC’s in-house asylum team. She provides legal representation to noncitizens seeking asylum and other relief before U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Immigration Court, and Board of Immigration Appeals. She was previously a supervising attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. Amanda graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law where she was a Civitas ChildLaw Fellow. Prior to law school, Amanda spent two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cape Verde working in education and community development. She received her Bachelor of Arts in international studies from Baylor University. Amanda is licensed to practice law in the state of Illinois.
Noelle Smagala is a paralegal with NIJC’s Immigrant Children Protection Project. She earned a double major in Spanish and Environmental Policy from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in May 2024. During her undergraduate career, she gradually expanded her focus to broader issue areas within public policy and government affairs. Some of her hands-on experience includes conducting casework through an internship with U.S. Congressman Sean Casten and facilitating a weekly community panel on Illinois state legislation with State Representative Carol Ammons. Noelle’s passion for nonprofit work, particularly with Spanish-speaking communities, grew even stronger following a four-month immersion in a Spanish-speaking city in Spain her junior year.
Leena Somani is a seasoned finance professional and is the Controller at NIJC. Leena has 20 years of experience working in Finance and Accounting across various industries including Food & Beverage, Digital Marketing and IT Consulting. She has led operations teams through many transitions such as mergers, acquisitions and new ownership teams. She specializes in process, procedures and ensuring the financial health of an organization. She received her Bachelors of Science in Business Administration with a focus in Finance and Entrepreneurship from Carnegie Mellon University.
Ana Elisa Souffront is a staff attorney with the Immigrant Children’s Protection Program. She earned her J.D. from Northeastern University and holds a BA in Political Science, with a minor in French. Before joining NIJC, Ana Elisa worked at a DEI consulting firm in Minneapolis as a Cultural Competence Consultant. While in law school, she participated in the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Clinic; she also interned with a labor rights organization, a gun violence prevention organization, and an immigration law office primarily working on SIJ and asylum cases.
Stephanie Spiro is a managing attorney with NIJC's Asylum Project. Previously, she was a staff attorney and then supervising attorney with the Central American Resource Center's Deportation Defense Unit, and then with NIJC’s Immigrant Children’s Protection Project. Stephanie graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude from Brandeis University with a B.A. in Hispanic Studies, Sociology, and Women’s and Gender Studies, and she received her M.A. in Trauma Studies from Tel Aviv University. A graduate of the University of Chicago Law School, Stephanie served as the Executive Comments Editor of the Chicago Journal of International Law and as a Child Advocate with the Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights. She was awarded the Edward F. Mandel Award for her contribution to the Law School's clinical education program. Stephanie has volunteered and worked with immigrant rights organizations in Boston, Los Angeles, Madrid, Tel Aviv, and Chicago.
Luke Srodulski is a staff attorney with the Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. He is a graduate of University of Minnesota Law School and Northwestern University. In law school, he was awarded the CLEA Outstanding Clinic Student Award as a student director with the Immigration and Human Rights Clinic as well as the Most Outstanding Editor Award as Executive Editor of the Minnesota Journal of Law and Inequality. Previously, he worked as a reporter and a grant writer.
Karolyn Talbert, associate director of legal services, provides leadership to NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense Project and NIJC’s Immigration Court Help Desk at the Chicago Immigration Court. She provides legal representation to immigrants in removal proceedings and in applications for immigration benefits. As a former Equal Justice Works Fellow, Karolyn specialized in representing immigrant victims of notary fraud. Before joining NIJC, she was the attorney advisor for the Chicago Immigration Court. Karolyn is a graduate of the University of Iowa College of Law and is licensed in the state of Illinois.
Ashley Tarbet DeStefano is the data management specialist at NIJC based in Boston, MA. Ashley previously served as a project manager with The Capacity Collective and as assistant director for community engagement in the Elma Lewis Center. They earned their M.S. in Critical Ethnic and Community Studies from University of Massachusetts Boston and their B.S. in Political Communications from Emerson College. Ashley is a community organizer working at the intersections of immigrant justice and prison abolition. They believe that when we ground our work in the principles of solidarity praxis and emergent strategy, data can serve to challenge power and uplift community.
Trisha K. Teofilo Olave is the Legal Project Manager for NIJC’s Immigrant Legal Defense project and is an Accredited Representative (full) through the Department of Justice. Trisha manages the VAWA & U Visa Pro Bono Project and Counter-Trafficking Project at NIJC, including two teams of attorneys and paralegals. Trisha also oversees DOJ Recognition and Accreditation for NIJC staff. Prior to joining NIJC, Trisha was a BIA Accredited Representative at World Relief-Chicago and Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. While at Catholic Charities, she supervised the Crime Victims Program, was the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Coordinator and the Pro Bono Coordinator. Trisha also worked as the senior legal assistant for a private immigration firm. She has participated in the VAWA/U Visa working group in Chicago since 2005. Trisha is a member of the Mayor of Chicago’s Gender-Based Violence Task Force. Trisha graduated magna cum laude from Loyola University Chicago with an honors Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and minors in Spanish and International Studies.
Tara Tidwell Cullen is NIJC's director of communications. She leads NIJC's communications strategy and content development and works with the news media to tell stories about the need for fair and humane immigration laws. She helped launch and co-authored the inaugural reports for NIJC's Immigration Detention Transparency and Human Rights Project, which monitors the Department of Homeland Security's immigration detention contracting and inspections system. She regularly contributes to research, reporting, and messaging and narrative development about the need to dismantle the immigration detention system and decriminalize migration. Tara previously was the managing editor of Cultural Survival Quarterly.
Julia Toepfer is NIJC's associate director of digital communications. Julia has more than 15 years of experience working in nonprofit communications, management, and fundraising for organizations across the country. She has provided training and consulting services for nonprofits, unions, and organizations to strengthen their social media channels and develop impactful online campaigns. Prior to joining NIJC, Julia was a legal assistant for an immigration law firm in Boston, worked on a collaborative campaign to achieve in-state college tuition for immigrant students in Massachusetts, and worked on advancing human rights and access to health care in Guatemala. Julia attended Boston College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Latin American studies.
Clara Unzicker is a paralegal in NIJC’s Indianapolis office where she works on the Immigrant Children’s Project, Asylum Project, and Immigrant Legal Defense teams. Prior to joining NIJC, Clara lived and worked in Bogotá, Colombia, where she assisted with a project supporting children, internally displaced Colombians, and Venezuelan migrants. Clara graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work and a minor in Spanish from Goshen College in Goshen, IN.
Catalina (Karen) Valdez graduated from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota with a BA in Public Relations, Spanish and Business. A little after graduating she moved to El Paso, TX to work with Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, a non-profit organization along the border. While there, she was able to focus on USCIS affirmative cases and advocacy for clients. She is passionate about immigrant rights.
Christina Valentin is a paralegal with the Immigrant Legal Defense project. Christina graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2023. During university, Christina worked as an investigative intern for the Public Defender Service for D.C. She worked as an interpreter for the Student Health Action Coalition at her university. She has also worked for other nonprofits and organizations to help address the educational opportunity gap between Latino and white students. Christina graduated from the University of North Carolina with a B.A. in political science and a B.A. in Hispanic.
Regina Vela-Mesta is a paralegal for the Immigrant Legal Defense team at NIJC. She graduated with honors from Marquette University where she majored in Political Science and minored in Spanish and French. During undergrad, she was a two-time appointed Senator for Student Government, and a research apprentice focused on algorithmic injustice for the Computer Science Department. She has held internships/fellowships at the Office of Governor Evers, Milwaukee County Courthouse and G-Strategies, a political consulting firm. Regina was born in Mexico and raised in the Midwest.
Fabiola Villalpando is a Schreiber Fellow and staff attorney with NIJC's asylum project. She graduated from Loyola University Chicago School of Law with a Certificate in Child and Family Law, and from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work. During her time in law school, Fabiola participated in the Immigration Law Practicum and Immigration Detention Project, where she assisted detained migrants with their asylum applications. Fabiola is licensed to practice in Illinois.
Tony Walner is a staff attorney for the Immigrant Children’s Protection Project at NIJC. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude from Emory University with a B.A. in Psychology and English, and graduated cum laude from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. While a law student, Tony interned with Chicago Volunteer Legal Services, Chicago Public Schools, and Chicago Park District; he also participated in women and children’s human rights and tenant advocacy clinics. He is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Nicole Ward is a pro bono coordinator on NIJC's Immigrant Legal Defense Project. She earned a Bachelor of Science in geography (GIS), alongside Bachelor of Arts degrees in political science and Spanish from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As a practitioner, she has worked with immigrant populations across Illinois and Northern Spain. Her policy research focuses on refugee reception and integration.
Grace Wilson is a paralegal with NIJC’s Post Asylee/Refugee Benefits project. She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2022 with a BA in Political Science and French with a minor in Spanish. During her time at WashU, she interned at the St. Louis County Domestic Violence Court and served as a student interpreter in French and Spanish for clients who needed assistance with healthcare and legal services. Since graduating, Grace worked as an English teacher in Paris and as a housing advocate at Apna Ghar, a nonprofit based in Chicago that works with immigrant communities to combat gender-based violence.
Mayon Yen is the director of development for NIJC. Previously, Mayon was a program development manager with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, where she was responsible for nearly $18 million in public and private grants throughout their life cycle. Mayon has also worked in development and evaluation in the social services sector in Los Angeles, where she supported HIV, case management, and mental health services for low-income immigrant communities. Mayon received her Master of Public Health from the University of California, Los Angeles and her BA from the University of Chicago.
Henry Zhu is a Skadden Fellow with the Pro Bono Asylum Project. He previously served as a law clerk for Judge Matthew F. Kennelly of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and Judge Ronald Lee Gilman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. During law school, Henry interned for the Legal Aid Society, Legal Aid Chicago, Greater Boston Legal Services, Brooklyn Defender Services, the Oregon Law Center, and the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Washington. He received his J.D. from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law School in 2022 and his B.S. in Finance from Indiana University in 2016. Henry immigrated to the United States in 2005, and he became a United States citizen in 2021. He is licensed to practice law in Illinois.
Keren Zwick is the director of litigation at NIJC. Keren focuses on litigation aimed at preserving access to the asylum system and systemic challenges to agency actions that delay or eliminate a noncitizen's ability to access the legal benefits afforded by the Immigration and Nationality Act. Keren also represents clients in petitions for review, focusing on individuals seeking protection based on their sexual orientation, gender identity, or mental health diagnoses. Keren joined NIJC after clerking for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Keren is a graduate of Columbia Law School and the University of Chicago.