Professional Experience

Summary

I am currently a defense investigator at the King County Department of Public Defense. I have over 12 years of experience working in human rights advocacy and research.

Previously, I was a research fellow at the University of Washington Center for Human Rights for five years, and an instructor for the Law, Societies, and Justice department, and Jackson School of International Studies. I taught classes on international human rights and justice.

During the summer and autumn of 2019, I served as a research intern for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Washington Campaign for Smart Justice conducting research to advocate for the reduction of long and life sentences in Washington State.

I worked for six years in Washington, D.C. at the National Security Archive, a non-governmental research institute supporting human rights research and transitional justice processes in Latin America. I also served as vice president of the board of directors of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission.

Center for Human Rights, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

I served as a research fellow at the University of Washington Center for Human Rights (CHR) “Unfinished Sentences” project conducting research on El Salvador, and help supervise the Center’s freedom of information work. As a part of this work, I created a training program and manual to teach undergraduate and graduate students how to file Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and appeals. I supervised, trained, and served as a mentor for undergraduate students in government documents research, document analysis, FOIA request and appeal process, and producing publications for public access to documents. I provided guidance on FOIA strategy, including litigation against the CIA and United States Department of Defense.

I provided guidance on the FOIA strategy for the “Human Rights at Home” project which researches immigrant rights in the state of Washington, including litigation against the Department of Homeland Security.

I worked with the UW Libraries to make the results of the CHR’s FOIA requests available to the public as a permanent digital collection with the library.

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Washington, Seattle, WA

During the summer and fall of 2019, I served as a research intern for the Campaign for Smart Justice, assisting in the editing of the forthcoming report “About Time: How Long and Life Sentences Fuel Mass Incarceration in Washington State.” I met with incarcerated women in Washington’s women’s prison, and interviewed them about their experiences serving long and life sentences. I wrote a short biography of one of the women for incorporation into the report. I also discussed with the women their priorities for advocating for policy changes in the State.

National Security Archive, at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C

From October 2009 to September 2015, I worked at the National Security Archive at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.  where I co-founded the Genocide Documentation Project, and also worked on the Guatemala, Mexico, and Colombia documentation projects, and conducted research on El Salvador.  During my work on the Guatemala Documentation Project, and my research on El Salvador, I assisted in the preparation of expert witness reports on the declassified documents used as evidence in human rights-related criminal and civil trials on the domestic, transnational, and international levels.

I filed over 1,200 Freedom of Information Act requests and over 200 appeal letters arguing for the release of documents to be used as evidence in human rights trials, and advocating for access to information as a human right.

For the Genocide Documentation Project, I created a database with a collection of nearly 20,000 declassified documents regarding the genocides in Rwanda and Bosnia. I assisted in the planning of two international “critical oral history” conferences which brought together formal government and U.N. officials from around the world to directly engage with and discuss declassified documents and the international community’s decision making process in response to the genocides in Rwanda and Bosnia. I created the declassified document briefing books, used as the primary source material for discussions during the conference.

Guatemala Human Rights Commission-USA, Washington, D.C.

I served on the board of directors of the Guatemala Human Rights Commission-USA (GHRC) a non-profit solidarity organization in Washington, D.C. from September 2012 to March 2016. I contributed to grant writing, blog posts, newsletters, and reports. I assisted in the logistics and hosting of speaker tour events, fundraising, advocacy, and lobbying efforts

I interned for GHRC from May-August 2009, and co-organized and co-led a human rights monitoring delegation to Guatemala in August 2009 to study women’s rights issues and violence against women, meeting with members of civil society and local government. I served as a volunteer for the organization from 2008-2015.

Center for Diversity & Inclusion (formerly GLBTA Resource Center), American University, Washington, D.C.

From January 2007 to December 2008, I worked as a project coordinator at American University’s GLBTA Resource center (which is currently known as the Center for Diversity and Inclusion). I planned and led student group to Mexico City to investigate human rights situation, made cold contacts in civil society organizations, planned meetings, arranged logistics and travel itinerary, provided Spanish language interpretation. I recruited students and organized pre-departure meetings, and prepared and managed budget of $15,000. For this project, I was awarded the GLBTA Resource Center’s 2008 “Bridge Builder Award” and recognized for “building campus diversity and intercultural understanding across communities, particularly as it relates to the issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.”

In autumn 2008, I  served as a teaching assistant for undergraduate gender studies class on domestic violence, “The Social Affects and Responses to Intimate Partner Violence.” I led a class session on international violence against women, and organized guest speakers for class.

From August 2008 to May 2009, I served as a Resident Assistant on Tenley Campus for students studying abroad at American University for a semester from around the country, and around the world. I was elected by my peers for the 2009 “People’s Choice Award” for my service to the community.

Selected Internships

Martha Ross Center for Oral History, Baltimore, MD, Technology/Interview Assistant (6/2004 – 4/2009).

  • Filmed lectures and interviews.
  • Assisted in audio/video recording, technical production, and video editing.

Community Bridges, Silver Spring, MD, Program Assistant Intern (1/2009 -5/2009).

    •  Assisted in creating after school program for high school girls to increase self-esteem, in an effort to decrease likelihood of becoming victims of domestic abuse.
    • Assisted in the recruitment of participants, and creation of advertisement material for the after-school program; translated documents from English into Spanish.

Washington Office on Latin America, Washington, DC, Intern, (5/2007-8/2007)

  • Researched and wrote report on corruption case involving security forces in Guatemala.
  • Performed administrative tasks such as taking notes at hearings, answering phones, updating Outlook databases, daily monitoring of news, and mailings.
  • Participated in congressional lobbying on Guatemala femicide resolution, Colombia free trade, and the U.N. International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG).

Vicaricas de Pastoral Social y de los Trabajadores, Santiago, Chile, Intern, (9/2006-12/2006)

  • Assisted new Colombian and Congolese refugees in Chile with familiarity of social services, office organization.
  • Observed assistance meetings with clients and assisted with interpretation and assisted in outreach to
    other organizations.