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Staff

Fellowships View Board of Directors

Leadership

Elisa Massimino
President and Chief Executive Officer
Rob Berschinski
Senior Vice President, Policy
Sharon Kelly McBride
Vice President, Advocacy
Zachary Silverstein
Chief Operating Officer
Hardy Vieux
Legal Director

Experts

Eleanor Acer
Senior Director, Refugee Protection
Rob Berschinski
Senior Vice President, Policy
Scott Cooper
Director, National Security Outreach
Susan Corke
Director, Antisemitism and Extremism
Brian Dooley
Senior Advisor
Jenna Gilbert
Managing Attorney (LA)
Neil Hicks
Director, Human Rights Promotion
Melissa Hooper
Director of Human Rights and Civil Society
Elisa Massimino
President and Chief Executive Officer
Laura Nally
Managing Attorney (Houston)
Jennifer Quigley
Advocacy Strategist, Refugee Protection
Rita Siemion
International Legal Counsel
Hardy Vieux
Legal Director
Raha Wala
Director, National Security Advocacy

Staff

Eleanor Acer
Senior Director, Refugee Protection
Eleni Bakst
Equal Justice Works Fellow
Maggie Barnard
Development Operations Manager/Refugee Protection Associate
Rob Berschinski
Senior Vice President, Policy
Heather Brandon
Advocacy Counsel, National Security (Joffe Fellow)
Scott Cooper
Director, National Security Outreach
Susan Corke
Director, Antisemitism and Extremism
Laura Gault
Harvard Public Service Venture Fund Redstone Fellow
Melissa Hooper
Director of Human Rights and Civil Society
Sharon Kelly McBride
Vice President, Advocacy
Zahava Moerdler
Sylvia Wattenberg Human Rights Fellow
Jennifer Quigley
Advocacy Strategist, Refugee Protection
Rita Siemion
International Legal Counsel
Patricia Stottlemyer
Chubb-Penn Rule of Law & Human Rights Fellow
Fiona Tomlin
Pennoyer Fellow/Researcher & Advocate
Raha Wala
Director, National Security Advocacy

Communications

Corinne Duffy
Communications Manager
David Mizner
Senior Writer/Editor
Ashley Panzera
Senior Video Producer
Christopher Plummer
Senior Media Relations Associate
Emma Stein
Communications Assistant

Development

Maggie Barnard
Development Operations Manager/Refugee Protection Associate
Brittney Bartlett
Individual Giving Coordinator
Johnny Gonzales
Senior Manager, Special Events, Law Firm and Corporate Giving
Eric Helms
Grants Manager
Paul LeGendre
Director, Foundations
Gina Taglieri
Director, Development

Operations

Cynthia Burns
Director of Operations
Peter Chan
Network Operations Engineer
Vlad Davydovych
Finance Coordinator
Vinincia Dorsey
Director, Human Resources and Office Operations
Muhammad Hamza
Administrative Assistant
Sara Hoffmann
Human Resources Manager
Katie Langford
Receptionist/Office Coordinator and Refugee Representation Assistant
Kurt Pacquette
Director, Finance
Dennis Rosensteel
Technical Support Associate

Refugee Representation

Lori Adams
Managing Attorney (NY)
Robyn Barnard
Staff Attorney
Josie Cardoso-Rojo
Staff Attorney
Maya El Cheikh
Legal Services Coordinator
Cassandra Estassi
Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow
Sugeily Fernandez
Legal Services Coordinator
Jenna Gilbert
Managing Attorney (LA)
Jessica Gorelick
Social Worker
Ana Guzina
Senior Staff Attorney
Anwen Hughes
Deputy Legal Director (NY)
Lesley Kirby
Operations Manager
Kennji Kizuka
Justice Fellow, Immigrant Justice Corps
Katie Langford
Receptionist/Office Coordinator and Refugee Representation Assistant
Janine Martinez-Salazar
Social Worker
Laura Nally
Managing Attorney (Houston)
Ana Ortega-Villegas
Legal Services Coordinator
Alexander Parcan
Staff Attorney
Marisa Peterson
Staff Attorney
Lamisse Abdel Rahman
Legal Services Coordinator
Jeanine Ratcliff
Temporary Social Worker
Justin Reissman
Temporary Legal Services Coordinator
Jacqueline Rojas
Legal Services Coordinator
Selam Tesfai
Senior Legal Services Coordinator
Hardy Vieux
Legal Director

Our Impact

“

Human Rights First is a premier institution devoted to the noblest of all causes.

” — Senator John McCain (R-AZ)
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