NESRI: National Economic & Social Rights Initiative

	STAFF
	Catherine Albisa Executive Director Ms. Albisa is a constitutional and human rights lawyer with a background on the right to health. Ms. Albisa also has significant experience working in partnership with community organizers in the use of human rights standards to strengthen advocacy in the United States. She co-founded NESRI along with Sharda Sekaran and Liz Sullivan in order to build legitimacy for human rights in general, and economic and social rights in particular, in the United States. She is committed to a community-centered and participatory human rights approach that is locally anchored, but universal and global in its vision. Ms. Albisa clerked for the Honorable Mitchell Cohen in the District of New Jersey. She received a BA from the University of Miami and is a graduate of Columbia Law School.
	Tiffany M. Gardner Human Right to Housing Director Ms.. Gardner has a background in human rights advocacy and corporate law. She has worked on human rights issues and grassroots organizing throughout Africa, Southeast Asia and the United States. Ms. Gardner has published several articles on issues of social justice and global inclusion. Her most recent publication is an article entitled "Human Rights Based Approaches in State Development Programming" in Education and Poverty in an International Context that was published by Columbia University Teachers College She serves as an independent expert on the UN Advisory Group on Forced Evictions. She is a former associate at the New York law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. She received a BA from Yale University, a JD from New York University School of Law and a LL.M. in human rights law from Columbia University Law School.
	Liz Sullivan Human Right to Education Program Director Ms. Sullivan works with parents and advocates to promote policy change in public education to guarantee students’ right to dignity and a quality education. She has carried out research projects to document human rights violations in U.S. public schools, and has provided trainings to parents, youth and organizers about how to incorporate human rights standards and strategies into their advocacy. She has worked as a consultant with Human Rights Education Associates and as Project Coordinator at the Center for Economic and Social Rights, where she authored the report Civil Society and School Accountability: A Human Rights Approach to Parent and Community Participation in NYC Schools. She holds a BA from Brown University and a Masters degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
	Anja Rudiger Human Right to Health Program Director (A joint program run by NESRI and the National Health Law Program.) Ms. Rudiger works with state-based coalitions to develop human rights approaches and tools for health care reform efforts. She is an expert on human rights and equality, specializing in policy analysis of disparities in the exercise of civic, economic and social rights. She has extensive experience integrating a rights-based approach to policymaking at local, national and international level. Previously, Ms. Rudiger carried out consultancies for governmental and non-governmental organizations, led the research department at the British Refugee Council in London, and managed the UK Secretariat of the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia. She received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Kiel in Germany.
	Laura Gosa Program & Fundraising Associate Ms. Gosa works on administration management, program coordination and support, fundraising & events, organizational infrastructure development, database management, communications, and web support. Before joining NESRI, Ms. Gosa interned at Human Rights Watch in the Americas Division, and also provided support to the HIV/AIDS and Children’s Rights Divisions. During that time she successfully wrote a Hellman-Hammett grant for a persecuted Haitian radio journalist. Her previous internship experience includes a position at the National Coalition for Haitian Rights. She holds a BA in French and European Studies and a Masters in International Studies, both from the University of Kansas.
	YANA DOMUSCHIEVA Administrative Assistant Ms. Domuschieva started at NESRI as a development and communications intern and later joined the full-time staff to provide administrative support. She previously worked with human rights and disability services groups in Bulgaria, writing grant proposals and advocating for policy changes. She holds a degree in Psychology and Russian from Bowdoin College.
	Summer 2008 INTERNS & VOLUNTEERS
	BRANDI CHRISTIE Human Right to Health Intern Ms. Christie is currently pursuing her MA in Human Rights at Columbia University. Her interdisciplinary studies combine international law, public health, and international affairs as a framework for global advocacy for human rights and health. Prior to working at NESRI, she worked as a program coordinator and facilitator at New York City Mission Society, with youth from Harlem and the South Bronx; and, before that, she worked as an advocate and supervisor at Safe Horizon, with victims of domestic violence and human trafficking. Moreover, she has also worked as an educator in Lesotho, New York, Taiwan, and Iowa. Ms. Christie received her BA in Sociology and English from Grinnell College.
	ELIZABETH KEENEY Human Right to Education Intern Ms. Keeney is currently enrolled in a dual Masters degree program at Columbia University, pursuing both an MSW at the School of Social Work, and an MPA at the School of International and Public Affairs. Her MSW focuses on policy analysis and advocacy and her work in the MPA program is concentrated in both social policy and human rights. In her first year, Ms. Keeney interned and then worked as a client advocate for the Bronx Defenders in the Family Defense Project. In the fall, Ms. Keeney will finish her third year of coursework and complete her field education at the Open Society’s International Harm Reduction Development Program. Prior to graduate school Ms. Keeney worked in school-based social services in Texas public schools. She holds a BA in social welfare from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
	KRISTIN MACLEOD-BALL Human Right to Housing Intern Ms. Macleod-Ball is currently a student at Yale Law School, where she is a member of the Lowenstein Human Rights Clinic and has worked with Human Rights Watch, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. Previously, Ms. Macleod-Ball worked for WITNESS, a human rights video advocacy organization, and participated in media collectives the New York City Independent Media Center and Paper Tiger Television. She received her BA in Political Studies and Human Rights from Bard College.
	KIKORA N. MASON Human Right to Housing Intern Ms. Mason is currently a junior at Fisk University pursuing a BA in Psychology. Upon graduation, Kikora plans to further her studies in either Human Rights Law or Photojournalism. Ms. Mason is working on the Human Rights of Hurricane Katrina Survivors Program; her work centers on the completion of a national survey to be completed by Katrina survivors across the country. She will also be managing the Zero Evictions Campaign, a campaign to end forced evictions in New Orleans.
	Marion McCleneghan Volunteer Board Coordinator Ms. McCleneghan enthusiastically advocates for improving health care and has substantial experience volunteering with several community-based organizations, particularly workers with injuries and the 911 responders. Her efforts to promote more equitable social safety net programs include conducting extensive research on the NYS Workers' Compensation system. She has been a NESRI volunteer for over two years, providing a wide range of program and administrative support. Now her work with NESRI’s Board of Directors will strengthen governance and contribute to the long term health of the organization. Ms. McCleneghan has a background in administration working within the corporate sector, real estate, print media, public relations and marketing. She studied media and Liberal Arts at Queens College.
	JEREMY MEISINGER Development & Communications Intern Mr. Meisinger will be a junior this fall at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, where he is pursuing a major in government. His studies focus on comparative politics, particularly the area of civil and human rights, and he has conducted research in this area in Denmark, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. He is deeply involved in activities on campus, including the William and Mary Students for Fair Trade, the William and Mary Review literary magazine, and the Monitor – a journal of undergraduate international studies research.
	RACHEL VAN WERT Human Right to Health Intern Ms. Van Wert is an undergraduate at Duke University pursuing a Public Policy major, Political Science minor, and Global Health certificate.
	LAURA YENCHMAN Legal Intern Ms. Yenchman is a rising second year law student at New York Law School. Her background includes human rights, political, and social cause related work. Specially, Ms. Yenchman has held positions at the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, and has experience working as a law clerk for the New York State Division of Human Rights. Ms. Yenchman also worked in the public sector serving as an intern in US Senator Charles Schumer’s office. Ms. Yenchman looks forward to continuing her public interest work throughout her law school career, and eagerly anticipates her upcoming position as an affiliate of the NYLS Justice and Action Center this coming fall. She holds a BA from Brandeis University, majoring in political science and economics, and a certificate in Irish Ethnic Conflict Studies from the University College Cork, Ireland.
	NESRI ADVISOR
	Sharda Sekaran Ms. Sekaran co-founded NESRI and served as the Associate Director 2004-2007. She worked with staff to define NESRI’s mission, vision, structure, planning, governance, key program areas, and partnership model. In particular, she was instrumental in launching the Human Right to Health Program and the Special Project on the Rights of Hurricane Survivors. Previously, she worked at the Center for Economic and Social Rights as the U.S. Program Fellow, where she researched a human rights approach to reforming health care financing in the United States. She also developed policy and public education materials and provided trainings on social and economic rights in the United States. Ms. Sekaran comes from a background of connecting grassroots constituencies with public policy advocacy as Associate Director of Public Policy and Community Outreach at the Drug Policy Alliance, a national organization promoting treatment and health-based alternatives to incarceration for non-violent drug offenders. Prior to that, she was a public relations and events consultant, and a Program Associate in the Arms Division of Human Rights Watch. Sharda holds a BA in International Relations from Pomona College and is pursing a MBA at The Roberto C. Goizueta Business School at Emory University in Atlanta, GA. She currently serves as an advisor to NESRI.