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Texas Appleseed Staff
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Deborah Fowler Executive Director
Co-Monitor, M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
512.473.2800, ext. 105 dfowler@texasappleseed.org
Deborah Fowler oversees all of Texas Appleseed’s efforts as its executive director. An attorney experienced in public policy, Deborah is a nationally recognized expert in school discipline and juvenile justice issues, having authored three major reports on the school-to-prison pipeline in Texas. She also authored a first-of-its-kind handbook for attorneys representing defendants who have an intellectual disability. She received the 2011 Excellence in Public Interest Award for her contributions to public interest law. She also received the 2011 Ma’at Justice Award for the State Bar Women and the Law Section — given to individuals who actively address the needs and issues affecting women in the legal profession and in the community. Prior to assuming the executive director’s position, Deborah served as Texas Appleseed’s deputy director. She also has extensive experience working with the judiciary, both as a judicial clerk and supervising attorney. Deborah holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tulane University and a Juris Doctor from Lewis & Clark College’s Northwestern School of Law.
Ask Me About: children’s law and policy, marathons, horror movies, and theme music for '70s sitcoms
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Brennan Griffin Senior Deputy Director
512.473.2800, ext. 102 bgriffin@texasappleseed.org
Brennan Griffin joined Texas Appleseed in 2010 as the development director and has helped set strategic direction and overseen several Texas Appleseed project areas as deputy director since 2015. He has extensive experience in advocacy and policy change, fundraising, and nonprofit management. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College.
Ask Me About: urbanism, running the trails of Austin, and Excel formulas
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Gabriella C. McDonald Deputy Director
512.473.2800, ext. 109 gmcdonald@texasappleseed.org
Gabriella C. McDonald helps set Texas Appleseed’s strategic direction and coordinates our cross-programmatic teams and projects.
Gabriella first joined Texas Appleseed in 2009 as a yearlong community service fellow focused on the issues of improving Texas’ foster care system and increasing access to fair financial services. She then spent four years in private practice as a litigator in Los Angeles.
In 2014, Gabriella returned to Texas Appleseed, serving eight years as the Pro Bono & New Projects Director, where her substantive efforts included, among other things, working to create policies to end youth homelessness and reforming Texas’ civil asset forfeiture practices. She is a member of the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Litigation’s Children's Rights Litigation Committee and a special advisor to the ABA Commission on Homelessness & Poverty.
Gabriella received her law degree and a master’s in Sports Management from the University of Michigan, and undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Government from the University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: college football, friending me on Peloton, 90s music, and volunteering/the importance of pro bono
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Ann Baddour Director, Fair Financial Services Project
512.473.2800, ext. 104 abaddour@texasappleseed.org
Ann Baddour is the state director of Appleseed projects aimed at bringing low-income and immigrant consumers into the financial mainstream. She is actively involved in reform of regulations governing payday and auto title lending in Texas to build greater consumer protection into these transactions. She also advocates for consumer protections to address financial exploitation of vulnerable populations and improve protections against abusive debt collection practices. Her work in the areas of immigrant financial education and improving consumer disclosure and protection in remittance transactions has been presented at economic conferences in Benin, Africa; Mexico; and the European Union. She was a member of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Consumer Advisory Board, serving a four-year term ending in 2018. Ann is a Fulbright Scholar with a Master of Public Affairs Degree from the LBJ School of Public Affairs and a Master's Degree in Middle Eastern Studies from The University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: predatory lending, world travel, and cross-country car trips with kids
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Monica Benedict Deputy Director of Research
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Monica Benedict is the Deputy Director of Research for the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team at Texas Appleseed. In this position she is responsible for managing, cleaning, and analyzing various datasets received monthly, as well as constructing and operationalizing data collection instruments used by the Foster Care Monitoring Team and developing data visualizations to communicate findings. Prior to joining Texas Appleseed in 2020, Monica spent over 10 years working with data and conducting research in criminal and juvenile justice systems in Texas and nationwide. She received a B.A. and M.A. in Sociology from the University of Oklahoma.
Ask Me About: Living in Austin as an OU grad, best vegetarian/vegan restaurants in Austin, Texas state parks, and The Office
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Deborah L. Borman Writing Director
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Deborah L. Borman (Debbie, please) is Writing Director for the Monitoring Team. She is both an Illinois licensed attorney and Illinois Licensed Clinical Social Worker. As a law professor over 15 years at seven different law schools around the country, she taught legal analytical writing and trial advocacy, coached moot court teams, and served on and chaired numerous national professional association committees. In addition, she spoke and published law review articles on controversial themes designed to improve teaching, learning, and human dynamics (and will continue to do so on invitation!)
Prior to her career in law education, Debbie served as a law clerk to a Justice on the Illinois Appellate Court 17-plus years, drafting more than 300 published opinions and non-published orders in both civil and criminal matters.
She continues to serve as an Arbitrator for the Circuit Court of Cook County, and as a Criminal Justice Attorney for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals indigent program.
Her book, A Short & Happy Guide to Legal Writing, was published in 2019. The second edition is forthcoming.
Ask Me About: interior design, cooking, waterfalls, Succession, and, of course, my cats.
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Kristian Caballero Director of Community Outreach
737.900.9441 kcaballero@texasappleseed.org
Kristian Caballero is the Director of Community Outreach at Texas Appleseed. She helps to develop partnerships and coordinate efforts on a variety of projects — with the intention to engage, activate and empower the community to create social change. She is an expert in community engagement, diversity outreach, grassroots organizing, coalition building, advocacy, and campaign strategy. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Legal Reasoning from the University of Texas at El Paso.
Ask Me About: human rights, racial equity, political demonstrations, travel, and karaoke
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Jennifer Carreon, Ph.D. Director, Criminal Justice Project
737.900.9442 jcarreon@texasappleseed.org
Jennifer Carreon holds a Doctorate of Philosophy in Criminal Justice and serves as the Director of Texas Appleseed’s Criminal Justice Project. In this role, she engages in public policy advocacy and works with community partners to reform local and state criminal justice policies that result in discriminatory and ineffective outcomes. Jennifer has worked on reforming Texas’ youth and adult justice systems since 2011 and has taught and conducted research in both areas since 2009. She earned her doctorate from Texas State University in December 2019, where her dissertation focused on Predictors of Secure Residential Placement for Youth Adjudicated to Probation in Texas. Her areas of research range widely from keeping kids “close to home” to ensuring proper treatment of incarcerated adults given PREA requirements, actuarial assessments, and model administrative policies for corrections and reentry. Jennifer also earned a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science, both in Criminal Justice, from Texas State University, in 2007 and 2009. While earning her bachelor’s degree, she also minored in forensic psychology and graduated magna cum laude. During her time as a master’s student, Jennifer worked as a graduate and research assistant for the School of Criminal Justice, and went on to teach as an adjunct for the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology, a position she still holds today.
Ask Me About: Horror movies, hiking trails, data construction & analysis, and ideal performance measures for social service systems
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Jing Chen Accounting Manager
Jing Chen is the Accounting Manager at Texas Appleseed. She oversees the nonprofit’s accounting and financial activities. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Jing worked in different industries, including an accounting firm, hotel, hospital, and more recently, a nonprofit organization, all in an accounting and finance role. She has an extensive understanding of bookkeeping procedures and analyzing and interpreting financial records. Jing holds a B.A. in Accounting from California State University at Hayward.
Ask Me About: Travel, Austin Chinese restaurant recommendations, cooking, Kombucha, Chinese cultures
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Nathan Clark Director of Finance and Administration
Nathan Clark has oversight of finance and administration for the organization. His department helps to create the organization’s annual budget, create regular financial reports, and assists with its annual audit and administrative operations. Nathan has more than 15 years of experience working in nonprofit finance and accounting. He graduated from the University of North Texas with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree focused on Management and Entrepreneurship.
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Meg Duffy Senior Policy Analyst, Disaster Recovery & Fair Housing Project
512.473.2800, ext. 132 mduffy@texasappleseed.org
Meg Duffy is a Senior Policy Analyst on the Disaster Recovery and Fair Housing project. She works with communities to document and analyze barriers to successful disaster recovery and advocate for equitable access to resources and opportunities. Prior to joining the Texas Appleseed team, Meg worked on community-based research studies on topics ranging from food access to intergenerational poverty. She holds a B.A. in public policy from the University of North Carolina and an M.P.P. and M.P.H. from the University of Michigan.
Ask Me About: Ultimate frisbee, equitable disaster recovery, and Jalapeño Cheddar Cheetos
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Uyiosa Elegon Community Outreach Organizer
832.727.3855 uelegon@texasappleseed.org
Uyiosa Elegon serves as a Community Outreach Organizer at Texas Appleseed. He promotes justice by educating and mobilizing residents in Greater Houston who are most impacted by Texas Appleseed’s project areas. Uyiosa’s prior experience includes working on electoral and issue-based campaigns, producing African cultural events, and facilitating various youth civic education projects and initiatives across the United States. He is a co-founder of Shift Press, a media organization that helps young people move power through story-sharing and journalism education programs. Uyiosa holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing from the University of Houston.
Ask Me About: Naruto, process theology, and youth power
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Laura Felix Public Relations Manager
Laura Felix assists Texas Appleseed's external communications efforts by identifying news story opportunities, producing media materials, and interacting with members of the press. Before joining Texas Appleseed, she served as a Communication Aide in the Texas Senate. Laura graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a B.S. in Political Communication.
Ask Me About: Traveling, volleyball, the Dallas Cowboys, yoga, and the New York Times crossword
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Tlaloc Fierro Community Outreach Organizer
737.704.6224 tfierro@texasappleseed.org
Tlaloc, a Dallas native and community leader, brings a unique perspective shaped by personal experiences. Having faced homelessness after coming out at the age of 17, they are deeply committed to empowering the community through authentic connections.
With over a decade of experience in personal and commercial insurance, they have honed a talent for building relationships while assisting clients with risk management and asset protection. Discovering this career path while navigating homelessness, they recognize the transformative power of stability and financial security.
As an advocate for youth, they have served as co-chair of the Metro Dallas Youth Committee, a youth-informed network dedicated to reducing homelessness among young people. Additionally, they have contributed as a Steering Committee member and advocacy team lead for After8toEducate, a program supporting unsheltered youth in DISD high schools and addressing the immediate needs of homeless young adults.
Tlaloc is the founder and host of Cereal & Civil Rights, a casual public forum for discussing local issues in Dallas. Furthermore, they are a key member of W.A.T.E.R., a team of community volunteers mobilizing during local natural disasters, established during winter storm Uri.
Graduating from Dallas College in 2022 with an Associate of Arts with an emphasis in Peace and Human Rights, Tlaloc is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas.
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Adrian Gaspar Program Associate
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Adrian is a Program Associate on the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Court Monitoring Team at Texas Appleseed. He brings a wealth of understanding, having aged out of the foster care system. After earning his Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Texas at Austin, Adrian studied in the graduate program at the UT Austin School of Social Work. After finding his passion for social policy, he completed the Master of Public Affairs program also at UT Austin. He worked at Disability Rights Texas, the federally designated Protection and Advocacy agency for people with disabilities in Texas as a Mental Health Policy Fellow. His work focused on advocating for students with disabilities and the intersection of student mental health, school climate, and school discipline. As a former foster youth, Adrian infuses his personal and professional experiences to shape his work on the Foster Care Court Monitoring Team. He also loves tacos, running, and anything to do with a nice swim.
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Corina Golea Office Manager
Corina Golea oversees Texas Appleseed’s operations and administrative functions. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Corina was Vice President of Operations at a tax services firm in New York, responsible for the financial productivity and efficiency of the overall business. She has a background in tax preparation, bookkeeping, and as a paralegal. She received her Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from Spiru Haret University in Bucharest, Romania.
Ask Me About: the TV sitcom, Friends; Romanian food; parenting as a single mom; and organizing spaces
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Briana Gordley, LMSW Senior Policy Analyst, Fair Financial Services Project
512.473.2800, ext. 117 bgordley@texasappleseed.org
Briana Gordley supports Texas Appleseed's Fair Financial Services Project as a Senior Policy Analyst, working to advocate for consumer protection, regulation, and reform in the areas of payday and auto title lending, unjust debt collection, financial abuse and coerced debt, data privacy, and emerging financial technology products. Prior to joining Texas Appleseed, Briana worked directly with survivors of domestic violence, human trafficking, and stalking to address the physical and financial safety needs and assist survivors in achieving self-sufficiency and stability. Briana is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work from the University of Kentucky and a Master of Science in Social Work with a concentration in Administration and Policy Practice from The University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: Survivor advocacy, self-care, Kentucky basketball, and true crime podcasts
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Andrew R. Hairston Director, Education Justice Project
512.473.2800, ext. 100 ahairston@texasappleseed.org
Andrew Reginald Hairston is a civil rights attorney and writer who serves as the Education Justice Project Director of Texas Appleseed. In this role, he engages in public policy advocacy and works with community groups to diminish the presence and influence of school police officers across the state of Texas. In recognition of these efforts, Andrew served as a 2019 Law for Black Lives Fellow, along with Tyler Whittenberg of Advancement Project’s National Office. Along with Khem Irby, he is a 2022-23 co-chair of the Dignity in Schools Campaign’s Coordinating Committee. He earned his law degree from Louisiana State University in May 2016, where he was a Faculty Scholar. Andrew received his bachelor's degree, cum laude, from Howard University. From 2017 to 2019, Andrew served as a staff attorney at Advancement Project, a multi-racial civil rights organization in Washington, D.C. He began his legal career as the George N. Lindsay Fellow and Associate Counsel at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law from 2016 to 2017. He is licensed to practice law in Texas and Louisiana.
Ask Me About: Chopped, amateur hiking, literature, and international travel
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Princess Jefferson LDF Marshall-Motley Fellow, Education Justice Project
737.389.4238 pjefferson@texasappleseed.org
Princess Jefferson is a legal fellow with Texas Appleseed’s Education Justice team. Her work aims to confront and address discriminatory school disciplinary practices, increased privatization of public schools, and the removal of culturally relevant curriculum in schools. Princess is a graduate of Howard University School of Law and is a staunch advocate of racial and education justice and social equity. Her interest in these areas is deeply rooted in and stems from her first hand knowledge and experiences of the harm of systemic racism and educational disparities. Through her work at Texas Appleseed, Princess hopes to dismantle these harmful practices, while championing causes that seek the actualization of educational equity and prosperity for all.
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Kelli Johnson Communications Director
512.473.2800, ext. 103 kjohnson@texasappleseed.org
Kelli Johnson manages communications efforts for Texas Appleseed. She has 24 years of experience in public relations and communications. Kelli has executed PR campaigns in Texas and other states. Her work has garnered numerous awards, including the 2005 PRWeek national award for Community Relations Campaign of the Year. Kelli holds a Bachelor of Journalism from The University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: gardening, the East Austin Studio Tour, and board games
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John Laycock Senior Research Analyst
512.473.2800, ext. 110 jlaycock@texasappleseed.org
John Laycock is a Senior Research Analyst studying how data can be effectively leveraged for more equitable disaster recovery policies. John has a background in urban planning and research analytics. Previous experience includes advocacy for better bus service and sidewalks in Austin, work as a legal assistant at an environmental law firm, and as a research manager for an equity-focused economic development planning firm. One of his projects there was managing the equity and workforce development component of the Oklahoma City Innovation District to ensure that a multi-billion dollar investment in the OU medical school campus would benefit surrounding low-income neighborhoods rather than just enriching the already well-off and creating displacement. He has a bachelor’s degree in Classics from the University of Chicago and a Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning from The University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: Austin history, metrics of social equity, e-bikes, hot takes on 5th edition Dungeons and Dragons
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Natasha Malik Staff Attorney, Criminal Justice Project
512.473.2800, ext. 150 nmalik@texasappleseed.org
Natasha Malik serves as a Staff Attorney on the Criminal Justice Project at Texas Appleseed. Her work centers on advancing equitable and data-driven reform across various components of the criminal justice system at the local and state level. Prior to joining Texas Appleseed, Natasha worked on policy issues around mental health, immigrant rights, and domestic abuse. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a minor in Political Science from Boston University and received her Juris Doctorate from South Texas College of Law Houston. Natasha strives to enact positive change through the rule of law that is just and targeted to improve the lives of all people.
Ask Me About: Human and civil rights, fitness, traveling, Houston sports, and Game of Thrones
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Martin A. Martinez, M.P.Aff Senior Policy Analyst, Youth Homelessness Project, Juvenile Justice Project
Martin A. Martinez is a Senior Policy Analyst who focuses on state policy work related to youth homelessness and juvenile justice. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Martin was working in the Texas Legislative Session as a legislative aide for Arnold Public Affairs Firm. He has had previous experience in the public policy and advocacy sector working as a legislative & policy associate at Every Texan and as a development intern at Annie’s List. Martin recently received his Master of Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin and earned his undergraduate degree from Southwestern University.
Ask Me About: the intersectionality of youth homelessness; horror movies; the next recipe I’m planning to make; my latest tv show binge; and the ATX food scene
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Lena Martinez-Wolfinger Pro Bono Director
512.473.2800, ext. 151 lmartinezwolfinger@texasappleseed.org
Lena Martinez-Wolfinger is dedicated to advancing Texas Appleseed’s mission by connecting private law firms, practitioners, professionals and community members with Appleseed as partners on our many projects. Drawing from personal, academic, volunteer and professional experience, Lena’s commitment to social justice advocacy spans more than 20 years and includes both recruiting and serving as pro bono counsel. Most recently, Lena served as the inaugural director of The Rebel Fund, a national campaign to fund women of color doing creative activism. Lena holds a degree in Anthropology from Dartmouth College and is admitted to the New York and Texas State Bar.
Ask Me About: Indigenous Futurism, The Enneagram, Ethnic Studies in Texas, and the value of pro bono as part of collective action.
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Farah Merchant Social Media Strategist, Criminal Justice Project
737.900.9436 fmerchant@texasappleseed.org
Farah Merchant is the Social Media Strategist for the Criminal Justice Project. She works to increase awareness on Clean Slate Texas initiatives, citation-eligible arrests, and other criminal justice-centered issues through media content and campaigns. Prior to joining Texas Appleseed, Farah managed the social media for an art, culture, and fashion publication and assisted a think tank with its media initiatives. Farah holds a B.A. in English and a certificate in Digital Arts & Media from The University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: slasher films, classic literature, and inclusive media practices
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Brett M. Merfish Director of Youth Justice, Youth Homelessness Project, Juvenile Justice Project
Brett M. Merfish is the Director of Youth Justice, which focuses on juvenile justice and youth experiencing homelessness. Brett first joined Texas Appleseed in 2012 working on foster care and fair financial services. She also has experience working as a legislative aide on Capitol Hill, as an associate at Patton Boggs LLP, and as the Political Director for a worker center. Brett received a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia Law School, where she was a member of the Virginia Law Review editorial board and founded the Feminist Legal Forum. She received a Master of Public Policy from the Sanford School at Duke University and her undergraduate degree from Wellesley College.
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Cole Meyer Policy Analyst, Criminal Justice Project
512.473.2800, ext. 140 cmeyer@texasappleseed.org
Cole Meyer serves as a Policy Associate on Texas Appleseed’s Criminal Justice Project. In this role, he conducts policy-focused research and engages in advocacy to reform state criminal justice policies that result in discriminatory and ineffective outcomes. His areas of research range widely from analyzing the inefficiencies of the record sealing process to examining legal and extralegal factors impacting fines and fees assessments. Cole has shaped his career through work in the nonprofit sector and legal space. His experience draws from interactions with individuals affected by housing inequities, refugees resettling in the United States, and those attempting to obtain Social Security disability benefits. He holds a Bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is currently fulfilling his Master of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
Ask Me About: my dog - Koi, Nebraska Volleyball, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and my next travel plans.
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Sherry Mojica Compliance and Operations Coordinator
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Sherry Mojica joined Texas Appleseed as the Compliance and Operations Coordinator with the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team, where she assists in monitoring the State’s compliance with the Court Orders related to the safety of children in the foster care system in Texas.
Having spent 30 years in public service, Sherry brings a wealth of knowledge regarding state government operations at multiple levels in the health and human services field. She has experience in leading coordinated efforts for high-profile projects, managing procurement and development of various contracts, and establishing monitoring protocols. She remained closely involved in personnel management, programmatic planning, policy and procedure development, policy interpretation, and government organization and administration.
Sherry earned her Bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing at The University of Texas at Austin. Sherry remains inspired and optimistic that the work of the Monitoring team, of which she is part, ensures children in the foster care system are getting the best possible care at such a vulnerable time in their lives.
Sherry lives in a small country Texas town and loves the peaceful country life. When Sherry is not at work, she loves spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren.
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Maile Molin Senior Donor Relations Officer
512-473-2800, ext. 114 mmolin@texasappleseed.org
Maile Molin supports Texas Appleseed's mission through grant writing and other development support. Maile has been involved in social justice for over 15 years, most recently as the founder and executive director of ENGLISH @ WORK, a program that provides customized English classes for immigrants at the workplace. She is a recipient of Toyota's 2014 Mother of Invention Award and Bank of America's Local Hero Award. Maile is a graduate of the LBJ School of Public Affairs where her research focused on adult language acquisition and immigrant rights. She also draws on the education she received as a food service and factory employee in her work supporting Texas’ low-income and immigrant communities.
Ask Me About: urban coyotes, Langston Hughes, and writing for social justice
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Noelle Perese Social Media Manager
512-814-9078 (Text/Facetime only) nperese@texasappleseed.org
Noelle Perese serves as the Social Media Manager for Texas Appleseed, where she emphasizes the organization’s work in bringing about fair, just, and equitable laws for all Texans. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Noelle worked in digital communications for a national political organization and an environmental organization. She has extensive experience in digital strategic communications and advocacy campaigns through her work with state and national political action committees. Noelle is a proud alumna of Smith College with a Bachelor of Arts in Government.
Ask Me About: Cooking, Star Trek, art, and Scrabble
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Shay Price Senior Program Associate
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Shay Price is a Senior Program Associate on the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team.
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Renuka Rege Senior Staff Attorney, Education Justice Project
832.707.2189 rrege@texasappleseed.org
Renuka Rege is a Senior Staff Attorney for the Education Justice Project, where she works to end exclusionary school discipline and school policing in Texas. Before coming to Texas Appleseed, she was an attorney at the Public Justice Center in Baltimore, Maryland, where she started the organization’s project to combat school pushout through a combination of direct representation, community education, and legislative and policy advocacy. She previously worked at a public school in Houston as a tutor for sixth grade students in reading skills. Renuka earned her law degree from Harvard Law School in 2016 and her Bachelor’s degree, magna cum laude, from Rice University in 2012. She is originally from Houston and recently moved back to the city.
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Kayla Roane Policy Advocate, Criminal Justice Project
512.473.2800, ext. 119 kroane@texasappleseed.org
Kayla Roane serves as a Policy Advocate for the Criminal Justice Project. Her focus is on advocating for system-impacted individuals through her lived experience with incarceration and substance abuse. Kayla grew up moving around in a single parent military family and has experienced diverse cultural and community backgrounds. Since her release in 2018, Kayla has dedicated her time to recovery through inpatient treatment, 12-step programs, extensive trauma and behavioral therapies, and service work in the Houston community. She is currently pursuing a degree in behavioral science and is passionate about understanding how trauma and adversity affect the human experience.
Ask Me About: Mental/emotional health awareness, recovery & spiritual growth, creating & exploring within the arts, health & fitness (weight lifting, yoga, etc.), and the foodie/coffee enthusiast culture.
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Laura Robinson Grants Manager
512.473.2800, ext. 120 lrobinson@texasappleseed.org
Laura Robinson is the Grants Manager at Texas Appleseed, assisting with grant funding and ensuring the organization complies with grant requirements. Her passion for nonprofit fundraising was developed in various roles over the past decade, including as a Fulbright-Nehru Researcher in India, a fundraising campaign assistant, and as the director of development and operations at a refugee-focused nonprofit. Laura holds a Master of Global Policy Studies and a Certificate in Nonprofit Studies from the LBJ School at The University of Texas at Austin. She also holds a B.A. from New College of Florida, where she majored in Political Science and International Studies with a minor in Gender Studies.
Ask Me About: social running clubs, gardening in Central Texas, herbal teas, and refugee resettlement
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Clarice Rogers Associate Director
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Clarice Rogers is the Associate Director for the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team.
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Omarie Roque Senior Program Associate
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Omarie Roque is a Senior Program Associate on the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team.
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Nora Sawyer Program Associate
M.D. vs Abbott Monitoring Team
Nora Sawyer is a Program Associate on the M.D. vs Abbott Foster Care Monitoring Team. Her work consists of collecting, entering, analyzing, and synthesizing information to assist in the court-ordered monitoring of the state’s foster care system. She appreciates collaborating with colleagues with varied professional backgrounds. Prior to working at Texas Appleseed, Nora performed data collection and analysis on a range of topics, from primate nutrition to fraudulent debit card transactions. Nora holds a B.S. in anthropology from the University of Oregon, and an M.A. also in anthropology from East Carolina University in North Carolina.
Ask Me About: Music jams in Austin, plant-based recipes, wildlife rehabilitation, and indoor rock climbing
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Shandrea Sellers LDF Marshall-Motley Fellow, Criminal Justice Project
737.389.4233 ssellers@texasappleseed.org
Shandrea Sellers is a legal fellow with Texas Appleseed’s Criminal Justice team focusing on advocacy for higher education access in prisons and reforming inequitable reentry and post-incarceration policies and practices. She holds a law degree from Thurgood Marshall School of Law and has previously engaged in policy research focused on probation and parole reform. Prior to obtaining her law degree, Shandrea served as an educational leader and administrator where she championed educational equity for more than 10 years. She believes in the power of centering the voices of those impacted by the justice system and aims to create systemic change that prioritizes holistic and innovative development of justice impacted people. Shandrea envisions a future where every individual, regardless of their past, has the opportunity to thrive through education and support.
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Madison Sloan Director, Disaster Recovery & Fair Housing Project
512.473.2800, ext. 108 msloan@texasappleseed.org
Madison Sloan is Director of the Disaster Recovery and Fair Housing Project at Texas Appleseed. Her work focuses on ensuring equity for historically excluded families and communities in federal disaster recovery programs, as well as broader fair housing and civil rights issues including housing and school segregation, environmental justice, and infrastructure equity. She joined Texas Appleseed in 2007 as an Equal Justice Works Katrina Legal Fellow, following six years representing elderly and low-income clients in housing, public benefits, and family law cases at Legal Services of South Central Michigan. She was awarded the 2011 Impact Award by the State Bar of Texas Poverty Law Section for her disaster recovery work. Madison is a graduate of Kenyon College. She received her law degree from the University of Michigan Law School and a Master of Public Affairs from the LBJ School at the University of Texas.
Ask Me About: ketchup chips, cookbook hoarding, teen movies of the 90s, and #HousingSegregationInEverything
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Jessi Stafford Senior Research Analyst
Jessi is a Senior Research Analyst at Texas Appleseed providing support to all projects through research methodology development, data gathering and cleaning, and data analysis. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Jessi worked as a research analyst studying and analyzing policy related to marginalized groups. She studied immigration policy and has served immigrants, migrants, and refugees in various capacities across Central America, Mexico, and Texas. Her work in Latin America also included developing a monitoring and evaluation program for an NGO in Nicaragua dedicated to promoting women’s health and solidarity, working with teenage mothers in the Dominican Republic, and providing support to an NGO in Guatemala. In addition, Jessi was part of a large study based in Greater Houston where she provided support in research and data analysis on best practices for providing services to youth experiencing homelessness.
Jessi holds a Master’s in Global Policy Studies from the LBJ School at The University of Texas at Austin. She also holds a B.A. from Texas Tech University where she majored in Spanish and minored in Mathematics. Drawing from her unique background, Jessi’s particular research interest is in how refugees and the undocumented community are uniquely impacted by homelessness. She is passionate about using data to inform policy and provide tangible solutions to social inequities.
Ask Me About: The NFL — especially the Dallas Cowboys, anything science, emigrating, my latest non-fiction read, thematic analysis, my dog — Bertie, and memes
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Ellen Stone, Ph.D. Director of Research
512.473.2800, ext. 117 estone@texasappleseed.org
Ellen Stone gathers, verifies, and analyzes data for all of Texas Appleseed’s projects. Prior to joining Texas Appleseed, Ellen worked as a doctoral researcher in the Social Inequality in Development Research Group at The University of Kentucky, focusing on both qualitative and quantitative research designs across development. In addition, Ellen has taught a course on research methods and, as such, is passionate about communicating statistics to broad groups of people and data-driven policy decision-making. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from The University of Texas at Austin, and a Ph.D. in Psychology from The University of Kentucky.
Ask Me About: crocheting, special effects makeup, developmental research on stereotype formation, and inferential statistics
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Jamie Tegeler-Sauer Director of Development
512.473.2800, ext. 113 jsauer@texasappleseed.org
Jamie Tegeler-Sauer oversees fundraising and development for Texas Appleseed. Jamie is an experienced project manager, having spent more than nine years working on business development initiatives in the consumer products industry before joining the Texas Appleseed development team in 2014. She has also served as a Design and Marketing Assistant for the University of Northern Iowa Marketing and Public Relations Department and the Hearst Center for the Arts. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Northern Iowa.
Ask Me About: parenting kids close in age, infographics, small-town Iowa, throwing a great party, and baking French macarons.
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Crystal Tran Equal Justice Works Fellow Sponsored by Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Education Justice Project
346.291.5218 ctran@texasappleseed.org
Crystal Tran is a legal fellow with Texas Appleseed’s Education Justice team focusing on K-12 truancy and its collateral consequences on students and their families. Her commitment to education equity stems from her experiences as a first-generation American and college graduate, and teaching students in Taiwan's rural indigenous communities. Recognizing how systemic racism and poverty keep kids out of classrooms, she aims to leverage her experiences gained through her J.D./MPaff education to continue Texas Appleseed’s work to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline.
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Vivian Young Individual Giving Manager
Vivian Young is Texas Appleseed's Individual Giving Manager, who provides support in fundraising and development. She is a passionate social justice advocate with a focus on racial and LGBTQ+ justice. Vivian holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Sociology from Texas State University. Since then, she has continued to grow her passion and experience in fundraising while creating a space for questioning privilege, the status-quo, heteronormativity, and oppression.
Ask Me About: Electronic dance music festivals, hitting the gym, self-proclaimed foodie, US Women’s National Soccer Team, and LGBTQ+ rights
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Archie Assistant to the Executive Director
Archie comes from a long line of feisty bearded warriors for social justice. At Texas Appleseed, his main areas of focus are the microwave and securing the hallway. Outside of the office, he enjoys short walks, baby carrots, and toys with squeakers. In his spare time, he volunteers as the mascot for a local youth soccer team and donates his time guarding a low window in the front of his home.
Ask Me About: beards before they were cool, squirrels, and managing up