Board
Our Board of Directors provides oversight and leadership to our organization and our activities. These volunteer members form the foundation of JJAI.
Barbara Frey
Chairperson
Barbara is an internationally recognized expert on human rights education and advocacy. She has been the Director of the Human Rights Program at the University of Minnesota since 2001. Barbara is also the former Executive Director of The Advocates for Human Rights, a Minnesota-based non-profit.
Robert Kuo
Treasurer
Mr. Kuo is the foundation and CEO of Berkitra Supply Chain, a global logistics company. Robert has years of experience working across borders and integrating technology to create sustainable solutions for global clients.
Sarvesh Desai
Secretary
Sarvesh is an Associate Attorney at DLA Piper LLP in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His practice focuses on domestic and international business, technology, health care and public-private development. He has worked with emerging companies in venture capital transactions, e-commerce and pro bono work includes representing non-profit as well as asylum applicants. Sarvesh is the Treasurer for NetIP (Network of Indian Professionals) Twin Cities, a non-profit serving to develop a network of South Asian professionals in the region.
Albino Garcia
Albino Garcia Jr. is the Founder of La Plazita Institute, a grass-roots community organization in Albuquerque, New Mexico that engages young people and their families in a comprehensive, holistic approach to youth and community development. In 1995, Mr. Garcia was awarded the prestigious Kellogg Fellowship, allowing him to travel and meet with leaders including President Jimmy Carter, Rigoberta Menchu Foundation in Guatemala City, Bishop Samuel Ruiz, the Dalai Lama, Parker Palmer, and others. Apache and Chichimeca in origin, Garcia is recognized as an outstanding leader and spiritual activist in Albuquerque, NM.
Bart Lubow
Bart has spent his professional career fighting for juvenile justice reform. In 1992 he designed and managed the Juvenile Detention Alternative Initiative (JDAI) for the Annie E. Casey Foundation – the longest-running and most successful juvenile detention reform initiative in the history of the United States. Mr. Lubow frequently speaks to national and international audiences about juvenile detention reform.
Victor Herrero Escrich
Victor Herrero has dedicated his professional life to criminal law of both adults and youth, the management of Social Services and to international cooperation, mainly in penitentiary and juvenile justice matters. He has worked for Spain’s Ministry of Justice, served as a director and coordinator of different government commissions, and as vice president of the Aiding Association for Drug Addicts (ARAD in Spanish). His international experience includes collaborations with the European Union, USAID, the Kingdom of Spain, and many global organizations such as UNICEF, PNUD and UNODC. Currently Mr. Herrero is a consultant for Terre des hommes Lausanne, a Swiss foundation working to improve the respect for children’s rights globally, and was the main collaborator during the drafting of the Iberoamerican Declaration of Juvenile Justice.
Eva Moya
Eva Moya is an Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Texas at El Paso. Dr. Moya’s research focuses on US-Mexico boarder health disparities, migration, intimate partner violence, homelessness, community-based participatory research methods, empowerment interventions, among others. Dr. Moya is active in volunteer and advocacy work on both sides of the border – Cd. Juarez and El Paso. Eva Moya received her PhD in Interdisciplinary Health Services from the University of Texas at El Paso.
Penelope Spain
Penelope Spain is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Open City Advocates, a Washington DC-based legal aid organization. As CEO of Open City Advocates and as a court-appointed public defender, she fights every day for youth to be released from secure facilities and to empower them in their own journeys. She is also an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University Law Center and serves in leadership positions of various local juvenile justice advisory groups. Previously, Ms. Spain worked as an international elections observer with the Carter Center in Venezuela and Sierra Leone.
Elena Azaola
Professor and Researcher at CIESAS (Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropoligía Social), Dr. Azaola is an athropologist whose research focuses on violence, juvenile delinquency and Mexican criminal justice policy. Dr. Azaola is part of the Network of Public Security Specialists and is often appointed to expert panels and commissions on criminal and juvenile justice. Elena Azaola is a member of the Mexican Board of Directors.
Mari McKeon
Mari McKeon has been a non-profit management professional for over 35 years. She has a proven track record for leading fundraising campaigns and is experienced in marketing communications, board training, campaign design and solicitation of $5 million+ gifts. Her skills include donor cultivation, planned giving and annual/capital fund campaigns. A member of the Massachusetts and Federal Bars, Mari created and manages a small civil law firm in support of individuals, business, organizations and nonprofit entities.
Ania Gonzalez
Ania Gonzalez is an attorney at Dorsey and Whitney LLP in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Ms. Gonzalez is active in the community and provides pro bono representation to underserved clients.