REBECCA LIGHTSEY
Executive Director
Rebecca Lightsey, an attorney experienced in public policy and nonprofit management, is Texas Appleseed’s Executive Director. Lightsey has served in state government as Texas Commissioner of Insurance, Executive Director of the Texas Insurance Purchasing Alliance, and as Assistant General Counsel to Governor Ann Richards. Her positions with nonprofits include Executive Director of SafePlace, the domestic violence and sexual assault center in Austin; Colonia Director for the Community Resource Group, working on the Texas-Mexico border; and she was the first Executive Director of the Texas Consumer Association. Lightsey received her law degree from The University of Texas School of Law.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 111
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
DEBORAH FOWLER
Deputy Director
Deborah Fowler oversees Texas Appleseed’s legal team, coordinating legal efforts on juvenile justice, the school-to-prison pipeline, and other Texas Appleseed project areas. She 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 the 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. Prior to assuming the Deputy Director's position, Deborah served as Texas Appleseed's Legal Director for five years. 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.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 105
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
ANN BADDOUR
Senior Policy Analyst
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 transations. 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. Ann also oversees Texas Appleseed's project on protecting the rights of immigrants with mental disabilities in the immigration court and detention system. Ann is a Fulbright Scholar with a Master of Public Affairs Degree from the LBJ School of Public Affairs and a Masters Degree in Middle Eastern Studies from The University of Texas at Austin.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 104
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
KATHRYN A. FREEMAN
Staff Attorney
Kathryn Freeman provides legal support for Texas Appleseed’s school-to-prison and juvenile justice projects. A graduate of The University of Texas School of Law, she previously worked for Texas legislators and is experienced in community outreach and communications. Kathryn interned with Texas Appleseed in 2007 and is a former Texas Appleseed Diversity Legal Scholar.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x106
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
BRENNAN GRIFFIN
Development Director
Brennan Griffin coordinates fundraising and development for Texas Appleseed. He has extensive experience, having spent more than 10 years writing and managing grants, fund raising, and cultivating individual donors for non-profit advocacy and community organizing groups on both the national and local levels. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 102
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
BRETT MERFISH
Staff Attorney
Brett Merfish provides legal support for Texas Appleseed's foster care project. Brett received a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law, a Masters of Public Policy from the Terry Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University, and a Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College. Her previous experience includes working as a legislative aide for a Texas congressman on Capitol Hill and as a field organizer for several political campaigns. Before joining Texas Appleseed, Brett worked for a year as an associate at Patton Boggs, LLP in Washington, D.C.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x.109
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
JANIS MONGER
Communications Director
Janis Monger coordinates our media relations and has editorial responsibilities for all Texas Appleseed publications. She has extensive experience in news reporting, managing government relations and public information offices, and has worked as Deputy Press Secretary in the Texas Governor's Office. She also has worked with at-risk middle and high school students as Education Coordinator for Communities in Schools Central Texas, and directed the Public Information and Governmental Relations Office for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of Texas at Austin and a Masters degree from University of Michigan.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 103 or via cell 512-296-8043
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
JACQUES NTONME
Legal Fellow
Jacques Ntonme provides legal support for Texas Appleseed's Mental Health Code Update project and is currently a fellow of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health. His previous experience includes representing involuntarily-committed individuals challenging their detention, addressing habitation issues for persons with intellectual disabilities in Santa Clara County, California, and securing workplace accommodations under Americans with Disabilities Act. Jacques received a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Yale College.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x114
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
|
MADISON SLOAN
Staff Attorney
Madison Sloan manages Texas Appleseed's disaster relief and fair housing projects. For her work to ensure that low-income communities share in federally funded rebuilding after natural disasters, Madison received the 2011 Impact Aware in Poverty Law from the State Bar of Texas Poverty Law Section. She first joined Texas Appleseed as an Equal Justice Works Legal Fellow working on systemic issues related to Hurricane Katrina. Sloan received a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School and a Master of Public Affairs from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas. Her previous experience includes over five years as a legal services attorney.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 108
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
MICHAEL VITRIS
Policy Analyst
Michael Vitris provides support for Texas Appleseed's school-to-prison and juvenile justice projects. Michael graduated from The University of Texas School of Law, and received a Bachelor of Arts from The University of Texas at Austin. Before law school, Michael worked as a school teacher in Brooklyn, New York through Teach for America.
Phone: 512-473-2800 x 110
Email:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
 |
|
