BETTINA DAMIANI
Director, Good Jobs New York

Bettina Damiani is the Director of Good Jobs New York, a project of Good Jobs First and the Fiscal Policy Institute, which seeks to make economic development subsidies more accountable. At Good Jobs New York, Damiani brought more transparency and public participation to development projects, including the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan after the attacks at the World Trade Center on 9/11 and the new Yankee Stadium in the South Bronx. Damiani joined Good Jobs New York with experience in community organizing and progressive public relations. She has a bachelor’s degree in communications and peace studies from Manhattan College, a master’s degree in urban affairs from Hunter College, and was a 2006-2007 recipient of the Revson Fellowship at Columbia University.

 

 

RADHIKA K. FOX
Federal Policy Director, PolicyLink

Radhika K. Fox is the Federal Policy Director for PolicyLink, a national research and action institute advancing economic and social equity by lifting up what works. Fox coordinates the organization’s federal legislative agenda. She works with Congress, the Administration, key federal agencies, and partner organizations to ensure the voices of low-income people and communities of color are central to policy debates in Washington, DC. Fox previously worked on promoting equitable affordable housing strategies and bringing shared prosperity to the nation’s older industrial cities. She also provides technical assistance, training, and policy development support to local and state equity coalitions. Fox has a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and a masters’ degree in city and regional planning from the University of California, Berkeley, where she was a HUD Community Development Fellow.

 

 

SHARON GARRISON
Communications Director, Mississippi Center for Justice

Sharon Garrison is the Communications Director for the Mississippi Center for Justice. Previously, Garrison served as press secretary for a 2007 gubernatorial campaign in Mississippi and served as Communications Director of The Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi, a statewide nonprofit that received national acclaim for campaigns to reduce tobacco use. Garrison is a graduate of Leadership Mississippi and an active volunteer with the Junior League of Jackson, Stewpot Community Services, Champions for Children Mentoring Scholarship program, Jackson Symphony League, and Greater Jackson Arts Council. Garrison is a member of St. Richard Catholic Church. She holds a bachelor's degree from Mississippi College.

 

 

CHRIS KEELEY
Coordinator, New York Stimulus Alliance

Chris Keeley is the coordinator of the New York Stimulus Alliance, a state-wide collaboration of six organizing groups working to bring accountability, transparency and fairness to the Recovery Act. Previously, Keeley was Associate Director of Common Cause/NY, where he organized around a range of good government issues after serving as interim chief of staff and campaign treasurer for a member of the Pennsylvania legislature. Prior to that, he was Campaigns Organizer at Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project, where he coordinated New Yorkers for Responsible Lending, a statewide coalition combating predatory mortgage lending and advocating on a range of community equity issues.

 

 

 

YVONNE LIU
Senior Research Associate, Applied Research Center

Yvonne Liu is a Senior Research Associate at the Applied Research Center, a public policy institute advancing racial justice through research, advocacy, and journalism. She has four years of experience in policy analysis and applied sociological research in the areas of healthcare, education, and urban planning. In 2004, she helped to co-found and lead NYC Summer, a project of the Paulo Freire Institute, which trained youth activists of color. She also served as a board member on the Local Station Board of WBAI 99.5 FM, a Pacifica affiliate. Liu has a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Columbia University and pursued doctoral studies in sociology at The Graduate Center, City University of New York.

 

 

 

 

GUILLERMO MAYER
Senior Staff Attorney, Public Advocates Inc.

Guillermo Mayer is a Senior Staff Attorney at Public Advocates Inc. in San Francisco, specializing in education and transit equity litigation and advocacy. Mayer worked in the California Senate, first as legislative aide for former Senator Hilda Solis, and subsequently as legislative director for former Senator Tom Hayden. Originally from Guadalajara, Mexico, Mayer immigrated to the U.S. at the age of 11. He lives with his wife, Giannina, in Oakland, California. Mayer has a law degree from the UCLA School of Law, with concentrations in Critical Race Theory and Public Interest Law & Policy.

 

 

 

TANI MILLS
Chief of External and Legislative Affairs, Center for Employment Opportunities

Tani Mills is the Chief of External and Legislative Affairs for the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO), a nonprofit corporation that provides employment services to men and women with criminal convictions in New York. Mills is responsible for external affairs including business development in New York City, community presentations and networking in New York and national forums; legislative affairs in New York and nationally. Prior to joining CEO, Mills held senior administrative positions with the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation. She has broad experience in criminal justice, vocational training, community supervision issues, and nonprofit management. She also earned the National Retail Federation’s National Professional Certification in Customer Service. Mills has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from St. John’s University, a master’s degree in forensic psychology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and holds a Certificate from Columbia University’s Not-For-Profit Management Program.

 

 

 

DENNIS PARKER
Director of the Racial Justice Program, ACLU

Dennis Parker is the Director of the ACLU's Racial Justice Program, which seeks to create equal opportunities for communities of color through litigation, public education, organizing, and legislation. Prior to joining the ACLU, he was Chief of the Civil Rights Bureau of the New York State Attorney General’s Office, and on the staffs of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the law firm Vladeck, Waldman, and the New York Legal Aid Society. Parker publishes and lectures on civil rights and is an adjunct professor at New York Law School. He has a bachelor’s degree from Middlebury College and a law degree from Harvard Law School.

 

 

CLAUDIA PEÑA
Statewide Coordinator, California Coalition for Civil Rights

Claudia Peña is the Statewide Coordinator for the California Coalition for Civil Rights. She was previously Equal Justice Society’s Judge Constance Baker Motley Civil Rights Fellow. While attending law school, Peña worked as the student coordinator of the Prisoner Reentry Initiative through A New Way of Life in Watts, providing housing and reentry support to formerly incarcerated people. She also worked as a legal intern for Lawyers for Human Rights in South Africa and Badil Center for Refugee Rights in Bethlehem, Palestine. Peña has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Mills College in Oakland, California and a law degree from UCLA School of Law.

 

 

JASON REECE
Senior Researcher, Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity

Jason Reece is a Senior Researcher at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity at The Ohio State University and has worked for the Institute since 2003. He manages and directs the Opportunity Communities Initiative, which includes all GIS, housing, community development, neighborhood revitalization, and regional equity initiatives at the Institute. His work involves outreach, education, advocacy, and policy research on issues related to fair housing/opportunity based housing, community development, neighborhood revitalization, regional equity, and GIS. As Director of the Opportunity Communities Initiative, Reece manages more than 15 staff and has assisted community organizations, philanthropic organizations, public agencies, and other nonprofit or faith based organizations in more than twenty states.

 

 

BRITTNY SAUNDERS
Senior Advocate, Center for Social Inclusion

Brittny Saunders is a Senior Advocate at the Center for Social Inclusion. While in law school, she worked with a number of racial justice organizations, including the Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment and the ACLU Racial Justice Program, the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Journal, the Harvard Black Law Students Association, and the Harvard Law School Democrats. Saunders’ work at CSI focuses on Building Resilience in Communities (BRIC), an effort to spur federal investment in disaster prevention. She also monitors and develops recommendations for Recovery Act implementation. Previously, Saunders worked as Policy Counsel at Be the Change, Inc. Before attending law school, Saunders taught at a public school in the South Bronx. She has a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College, a master’s degree in education from Fordham University, and a law degree from Harvard Law School.

 

 

 

MINDY TARLOW
Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, Center for Employment Opportunities

Mindy Tarlow is the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO), a nonprofit corporation that provides employment services to men and women with criminal convictions in New York. Prior to joining CEO, Tarlow spent ten years at the New York City Office of Management and Budget where she rose from Senior Analyst to Deputy Director. She is Chair of the National Transitional Jobs Network and Vice Chair of the New York City Employment & Training Coalition. Most recently, Tarlow served on the Mayor’s Commission for Economic Opportunity, and the Governor’s Transition Team on Criminal Justice. She is also an Adjunct Professor at New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.

 
 

 

SHARYN TEJANI
Special Litigation Counsel, Civil Rights Division Department of Justice

Sharyn Tejani recently returned to the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. Her current capacity is Special Litigation Counsel for the Employment Litigation Section. Tejani has worked on civil rights/women's rights issues since graduating from law school. Prior to her current position she served as Senior Policy Counsel of the National Partnership for Women & Families where she worked on issues of employment discrimination, affirmative action, paid leave, and paid sick days. Tejani started her career as a litigator at the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and subsequently moved to the Feminist Majority Foundation to work on reproductive rights issues. Tejani then returned to government work at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She is married, with 2 children, and lives in Virginia.