staff alumni
HUMAN RIGHTS INITIATIVE OF NORTH TEXAS, DISTINGUISHED STAFF ALUMNI Ms. Elizabeth (Betsy) A. Healy
Executive Director, 2000-2005 Ms. Healy, co-founder of Human Rights Initiative in December 1999, along with Serena Simmons Connelly. Ms. Healy served as Executive Director and Attorney for the organization until November 2005. Prior to her years with HRI, she was an associate with Cowles & Thompson, PC. She also completed a judicial clerkship at the Dallas Court of Appeals. Ms. Healy’s undergraduate work was at the University of Notre Dame, with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, 1991. She then graduated from the University Of Cincinnati College Of Law in 1994 Ms. Healy remains firmly committed to the agency's mission and currently leads the Board of Trustees for the agency. Ms. Healy is currently a Program Officer with the Harold Simmons Foundation, Dallas, TX.
Mr. Bruce Budner Director, Legal Services 2001 - 2002 Mr. Budner served as Legal Director and managed all legal functions of HRI. He also was responsible for representing asylum seekers and overseeing and recruiting the HRI Pro Bono Attorney Program. Prior to joining HRI, Mr. Budner was a trial lawyer in Dallas, Texas for 25 years and managing partner of his law firm for a majority of that time. Since leaving HRI in 2002, Bruce and his wife have lived in Berkeley, California, where Bruce spent several years working at a political think tank, the Rockridge Institute. He now spends his time mentoring students in Berkeley Law's asylum clinic and preparing to teach legal ethics at Berkeley Law beginning in fall 2009. Mr. Budner is an honors graduate of both Tufts University and the University Of Texas School Of Law.
Ms. Lisa Normand
Legal Assistant, 2002-2004 Ms. Normand began working at HRI as a legal intern in September 2002, then joined the staff as a legal assistant in January 2003. She supported the legal department by assisting with client intakes, case preparation for asylum-seekers and victims of human trafficking, and family reunification and permanent residency applications for asylees.
Ms. Normand graduated with honors from the University of North Texas with a B.A. in political science and Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law.
Mr. Gregory Barrett Administrator, HRI Client Services, 2004 - 2005 Mr. Barrett began working at HRI originally as a volunteer in 2002. Then joined as a staff member in 2004; responsible for redesigning the Client Services programs at HRI to the current case management and referral model. This model leverages the vast social services in the DFW area, so that these services do not have to be re-created at HRI. Mr. Barrett attended the University of Southern California, BA International Relations; senior year of the undergraduate program was spent at the London School of Economics (LSE). Mr. Barrett has returned to London, and is working on a masters program in International Relations at the London School of Economics.
Ms. Jara Carrington
Coordinator, Volunteer Attorney Program & Resident Anthropology Research Analyst, 2005-2007 Ms. Carrington joined HRI in February 2005 as general research analyst, agency administrator and later took responsibility as Coordinator of the Volunteer Attorney program; Ms. Carrington worked directly with the Director of the Volunteer Attorney program in recruiting and training volunteers. In this capacity, she also engaged in outreach activities to the North Texas community to raise awareness and encourage participation in the various volunteer programs. Ms. Carrington graduated with Honors from the University of North Texas with a B.A. in Psychology, and a Masters Degree in Applied Anthropology. Ms. Carrington’s practical thesis focused on undocumented Latino minors. This past research project is assisting HRI to outreach to the Latino immigrant communities in North Texas, enabling the agency to provide services to more youth in need. Ms. Carrington is continuing her studies and education at the University of New Mexico’s Ph. D. Program in Ethnology/Linguistics. This is a study of comparative and historical perspectives on critical social issues, human rights, social justice focusing on both the social and cultural aspects of class, gender, ethnicity, nationalism, and territoriality. Power and difference as they are expressed in language, the politics of representation, the cultural construction of identity, expressive culture, political economy, immigration, and tourism are key areas of concern.
Mr. Philip E. Mayor
Legal Assistant, 2005 - 2008 Mr. Mayor graduated with honors from Rice University in 2003 with a degree in philosophy and economics. He spent his junior year studying philosophy on a scholarship at Cambridge University. Since graduating from Rice, Mr. Mayor spent time living in Mexico City, where he learned to speak Spanish. Mr. Mayor worked as a strategic consultant with the Boston Consulting Group, a leading management-consulting firm, prior to joining HRI. Mr. Mayor served as a legal assistant supporting adult asylum cases, VAWA cases, and the Child Immigrant Project.
In the fall of 2008 Mr. Mayor left HRI to begin law school at Harvard Law School where he plans to study human/civil rights in hopes of building a career in human rights and impact litigation both at home and abroad. He considers his career to have been inspired by his work with HRI clients.
Ms. Chelle Valone
Client Services Administrator, 2006 - 2008 Chelle joined Human Rights Initiative in March 2006. In this role, she assisted our clients with any social service needs they may have faced while moving through the immigration legal process. Prior to joining HRI, Chelle spent more than four years providing Case Management Services for the homeless populations served by the Presbyterian Night Shelter of Tarrant County. As a Case manager she worked with a varying client base of diverse backgrounds; largely homeless women who have children, and are often afflicted with mental illness, substance abuse, and other disabilities. Chelle graduated Cum Laude from the University of North Texas, with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology, December 2004. Her international experience includes field studies in West Africa and South America. As Client Services Administrator, Chelle was responsible for all activities of the Client Services Department. These included comprehensive case management with referrals, advocacy, and access to medical, psychological and social needs. This involved providing information on housing, transportation, food, and clothing resources to HRI's client base. In addition, Chelle was also responsible for the training and placement of Mentors for HRI's Mentor Program.
Ms. Kimberly Rafalski
Director, Human Resource Services & Volunteer Attorney Program, 1999-2008 Ms. Rafalski joined HRI in 1999, before the agency had an official address. An experienced paralegal and accredited BIA representative, Ms. Rafalski was well-versed in immigration issues and was already working with the immigrant community in Dallas. When Elizabeth Healy approached her to join HRI Ms. Rafalski was initially wary, but her heart for service compelled her to join forces with Ms. Healy, Ms. Connelly and Mr. Flowers to bring the HRI vision to life. Over the next eight years, Ms. Rafalski's invaluable efforts were instrumental in shaping HRI's current policies and procedures. She laid the foundation for the volunteer attorney program and was honored in 2006 with the Pioneer of Freedom award. In 2008, HRI received the Arthur J. Melton Human Rights award, due largely to Ms. Rafalski's unwavering dedication and genuine compassion for her clients. HRI's impressive network of devoted pro bono attorneys and volunteers is a lasting testament to the commitment that Ms. Rafalski has to the agency and its mission. In the fall of 2008, Ms. Rafalski left HRI to pursue another life path in teaching. It was from her work in human rights and immigration issues that she has been called to increase awareness through the education system. She will teach social studies and will undoubtedly use her experiences and stories to bring the classroom to life and instill a passion for human rights in the next generation.
Ms. Sarah Rogerson Legal Education and Asylum Attorney, 2007-2009 Sarah joined the agency in 2007 after graduating from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law with a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in International Law. She graduated from Hillsdale College in 2000 with a B.A. in Economics and French and then went on to pursue a law degree (J.D.) and Master of Arts in Diplomacy and International Relations from Seton Hall University School of Law. At Seton Hall, Sarah participated in the Immigration Law & Human Rights Clinic where she successfully handled her first asylum case. As the Legal Education and Asylum Program attorney, Sarah not only worked to increase the success rate of the asylum program, but also formalized HRI's advocacy strategy. Sarah drafted and began implementing the HRI Advocacy Plan, which included short and long term strategies for education and outreach locally, statewide and nationally. She also provided leadership to the newly-formed Pro Bono Committee, comprised of current HRI pro bono attorney volunteers, which began a pro bono newsletter and regular pro bono appreciation events. Sarah has also guest-lectured on the topics of human rights and immigration law at many of the legal and undergraduate educational institutions in North Texas. In May 2009, Sarah was invited to join the faculty of the University Of Baltimore School Of Law as a Clinical Fellow in the Immigrant Rights Clinic where she will continue to educate law students and inspire future pro bono attorneys into action on behalf of clients much like those she worked with at HRI.
Mr. Jayson Valcik Agency Administrator, 2007 - 2008 Mr. Valcik began volunteering for HRI on special events in 2004. Then joined as a staff member in 2007 and was responsible for the infrastructure and day-to-day operations of the agency. Mr. Valcik's first task after joining the HRI staff was to evaluate and train the revenue development department on new fundraising software. He later went on to research, negotiate the purchase of and implement new legal case management software. This software was critical to the agency due to the ever increasing client base and it required a more streamline measure to handle the case loads. Mr. Valcik was also involved in several employee recruitment processes for the legal and volunteer teams. He managed the bilingual volunteer translation department by assigning and tracking documents that required translation for use in court. The summer Intern program was also designed by Mr. Valcik to be implemented into the case management software and he oversaw this transition while managing the program first hand. Mr. Valcik assisted the entire staff with lower to mid-level IT issues on a daily basis and was responsible for administering a much needed computer and internal communications system upgrade. Mr. Valcik truly put his whole heart and effort in any task that was given to him and will always be connected to this wonderful organization that is committed to saving lives. Mr. Valcik has returned to New York City, and is working to further his education in Business Management and Leadership practices at New York University.
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