Guatemala Human Rights Commission/USA

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President
Kathy Ogle is currently a free-lance interpreter and translator in Washington DC. (www.kathyogle.com). From 1997-2003 she was Co-Director of the Ecumenical Program on Central America and the Caribbean (EPICA). She has worked in Guatemala with Witness for Peace (1990-1991) and in El Salvador with the Mennonite Central Committee (1992-1994). Kathy became interested in Guatemala through her work with the Sanctuary Movement in Fort Worth, Texas in 1984-86.

Vice President
Amy Kunz serves as Senior Grants Manager at the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC), a youth development organization that has been working for Washington, D.C.’s  low-income, minority youth and families for over 35 years. Before coming to LAYC, Amy held positions as varied as a private sector marketing consultant, a high school teacher overseas, and a Conservation of Natural Resources Volunteer for the Peace Corps in Guatemala. She is also leads walking tours of historic D.C. neighborhoods as a tour guide for Washington Walks. Amy holds a B.A. in English/Journalism from Miami University (in Ohio), a M.Ed. in International Education/Teaching from Framingham State College, and a M.A. in Communication, Culture, and Technology from Georgetown University.

Secretary
Joan Dawson has a master's degree in public health and a strong interest in human rights. She raises awareness of these issues through her writing. She attended the For Women's Right to Live delegation in 2007 and remains committed to seeking justice for victims of gender-based violence and human rights violations.

Yolanda Alcorta

América Calderón, came to the US from Guatemala in 1982 fleeing the political repression of Rios Montt.  For several years in the 80's,  she worked editing a weekly newsletter on Guatemala, Enfoprensa.  Throughout her time in the U.S. she has participated in several Guatemalan groups and worked in the 90's in a campaign to get TPS for Guatemalans.  After working for more than 20 years in immigration law, she shifted careers and works in Tellin' Stories, a non profit organization organizing  low income families in the public schools.  She has three children all graduated from college.  After politics and her children, her other passion is working with clay creating ceramic pieces.

Christina del Castillo has had the privilege of living and working in Guatemala where she conducted graduate research on government decentralization and local citizen participation in compliance with the Peace Accords; served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in San Juan Chamelco, Alta Verapaz; conducted research for a report on youth gangs; and served as Central America Desk Officer at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).  Tina currently serves as a Governance Advisor with USAID where she provides technical guidance to foster transparency and accountability in the public sector.  She collaborates with other donors, civil society and international organizations regarding governance programming, international agreements and research to improve development assistance.  Tina has a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from California State University San Marcos and a Master of Public Administration degree in international development from Rutgers University. 

Janett Forte is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, Virginia, where she serves as program director for the VCU Institute for Women’s Health.  She is a licensed clinical social worker with a Master’s Degree in Social Work from VCU.  A leader in the area of gender-based violence, she has over twenty-five years experience in training, public policy, program development, evaluation, and systems change. Under the umbrella of community engagement, she has been building a network of partnerships and initiatives linking VCU with the community.
As a social worker and activist, she has committed her career to women’s issues, human rights and social justice. She serves on a number of community advisory groups and boards and is currently on the health committee with the Highland Support Project in Richmond, which serves Mayan communities in Guatemala. She traveled to Costa Rica in 2008 and to Honduras and Guatemala in 2009 and 2010 as part of university- community partnered service projects. She participated in the GHRC’s August 2009 violence against women delegation under the “For the Women’s Right to Live” campaign.

Gloria Jean Garland is a lawyer specializing in international human rights issues. Currently serving as a Senior Rule of Law / Human Rights Expert for the Democracy and Governance Office of the U.S. Agency for International Development, she provides field support to countries such as Colombia, Haiti, Bolivia, Guatemala and El Salvador with respect to Rule of Law, Human Rights and other democracy programming. She previously served as the Legal Director for the European Roma Rights Center in Budapest, representing victims of violence and other human rights violations before the European Court of Human Rights, and was an adjunct professor for three years in the Human Rights Division of the Legal Studies faculty at Central European University. Prior to joining USAID in May 2006, she served as a consultant for the Council of Europe and the OSCE, designing and implementing human rights and anti-discrimination training programs. She holds a B.S. in Journalism, a B.A. in French, and a J.D., all from the University of Colorado in Boulder, as well as an LL.M. in International and Comparative Law from the Free University of Brussels, Belgium.

John Leary is a Spanish teacher at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, Maryland. John has led several high school student service trips to Costa Rica and Mexico. John has served on the board of directors of TASSC International in the past. He is married to wife Kristine and has two children Michael and Anna.

Jean-Marie Simon

 

ADVISORY BOARD

Kit Gage

Jennifer Harbury

Sister Dianna Ortiz

Sister Alice Zachmann

Raul Molina

 

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