Current Training Fellows

CLPI delivers its training through a nationwide network of Fellows. CLPI Fellows augment the CLPI staff's capacity to meet the growing need for lobbying and advocacy training. Geographically dispersed, the Fellows undergo training in CLPI's philosophy and pedagogy and also contribute to an evolving curriculum adaptable to various training needs.

CLPI's Fellows are senior public interest advocates in their states and communities. As such, they bring real world lobbying and advocacy experience that you could only get with high-priced consulting firms. Because they are locally based, CLPI Fellows can sustain relationships with partners over a longer period of time to put learning into practice
All CLPI trainings are measured for impact with tested evaluation tools. Pre- and post-training measures assess increases in knowledge, skills and confidence. In addition, participants are contacted three to four months following a training to assess if they have taken proactive steps toward advocacy engagement internally or externally.

CLPI training evaluations show significant increases in skills, knowledge and motivation by nonprofit participants. A recent survey of CLPI trainees by Innovation Network shows that CLPI-trained nonprofits have gone on to put advocacy into action with important outcomes for their constituents and causes. Innovation Network and CLPI will release a report on these survey and interview findings by the end of 2008.

CLPI Fellows

Jennifer Alpha
Bill Crim
Tim Delaney
Jeannie Fox
Lori McClung
Roy Mitchell
Jason Sabo
Erin Skene
Tracy Velázquez

Current CLPI Fellows - Bios

Jennifer Alpha
Jennifer is currently a Senior Analyst at the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). Before joining GAO, Jennifer was an attorney at Reno & Cavanaugh, where she specialized in housing and community development issues. She and her firm had particular expertise in public housing projects and complex housing finance. As part of this work, Jennifer worked closely with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as well as local governmental entities such as public housing authorities.

Prior to joining Reno & Cavanaugh in 2001, Jennifer worked on housing and community development issues in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Through the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, Jennifer assisted the Allegheny County Housing Authority in considering the legal and policy issues of implementing a court-ordered public housing desegregation decree. Jennifer also worked on landlord tenant issues at the Neighborhood Legal Services Association, assisted the Wilkinsburg Intra-Community Network with various community development issues, and assisted in the creation of a Global Non-Profit Law Program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Jennifer graduated from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1999, and was awarded a Public Legal Income Foundation Fellowship. Jennifer also is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public and International Affairs where she won a Faculty Award for Public Management and Policy. Jennifer also graduated from University of Pittsburgh as an undergraduate earning a Female College Memorial Scholarship in 1995.

Bill Crim
Bill Crim is the Executive Director of United Ways of Utah and the Director of Strategic Initiatives and Public Policy for United Way of Salt Lake. Bill has worked for over 15 years on public policy issues related to poverty - first as a research fellow for the Coalition on Human Needs in Washington, D.C. and then as a researcher, policy analyst, community organizer, lobbyist, and executive director for Utah Issues, Center for Poverty Research and Action. As Utah Issues' executive director he expanded the organization's role in the areas of research, economic policy, community development, nonprofit capacity building, and asset formation - developing a statewide infrastructure to expand the availability of individual development accounts.

Working with United Way, Bill has developed a collaborative public policy initiative among nine local United Ways and helps lead community change initiatives in the areas of economic opportunity and education. He is often sought as a resource for strategic planning, organizational development and outcome measurement, and is one of the state's leading experts on nonprofit advocacy and poverty. Bill graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Utah with a BA in Political Science.

Tim Delaney
Tim Delaney is the President and CEO of the National Council of Nonprofits. NCNA is a network of state and regional nonprofit associations, serving more than 20,000 member organizations, that works to advance the capacity of the nonprofit sector and to expand their role in society. Most recently, Tim was the President and founder of The Center for Leadership, Ethics & Public Service. The Center provides on-site ethics and leadership training programs, conducts operational reviews to help organizations avoid (or mitigate) problems, facilitates leadership retreats, helps state and local officials transition into public office, and writes about public policy issues.

An attorney with extensive high-level experience in the business, government, and nonprofit sectors, Tim has worked with numerous legislators, nonprofit leaders, philanthropists, state & local public officials, and other professionals throughout the United States. Prior to founding The Center in 2001, he served as Chief Deputy Attorney General for the state of Arizona and prior to that, he was appointed the state's Solicitor General in 1995.

Tim has also incubated the development and served as the Interim CEO of the Alliance of Arizona Nonprofits, served as Senior Advisor for the National Council of Nonprofit Associations, and currently serves on the national Steering Committee for the Nonprofit Congress. Tim is the author of a special report, Arizona's Nonprofit Sector: The Spirit of Arizona and Celebrating Best Practices in Public Service. A graduate of Yale, the LBJ School of Public Affairs, and the University of Texas Law School; Tim also serves as an adjunct professor at Arizona State University's School of Public Affairs and Nonprofit Management Institute.

Jeannie Fox
Jeannie is Deputy Director of Public Policy at the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, having spent over a decade working in nonprofit and government direct service organizations.  Jeannie's experience ranges from developing and supervising psychiatric crisis residential services, running a domestic violence shelter, and being the clinical supervisor of a large city/county alcohol & drug services unit.  These experiences greatly informed her later work as a nonprofit administrator and policy director.

In her current role at MCN, Jeannie is responsible for direct and grassroots lobbying and advocacy efforts on behalf of the nonprofit sector in Minnesota, and is a frequent speaker and trainer to various nonprofits increasing their capacity to do advocacy and civic engagement work.  Jeannie has developed extensive training curricula for MCN-sponsored training series in Minnesota as well as custom policy institutes in various states, including Michigan, Illinois, and Florida.  Jeannie serves on steering committees, public policy advisory councils and boards of directors of numerous nonprofit organizations.

Jeannie has a B.A. degree from South Dakota State University, a Masters degree in Agency Counseling from the University of North Texas, and a Mini-MBA for Nonprofit Organizations from the University of St. Thomas.  Beginning in the Spring of 2009, Jeannie will join the faculty of the University of Minnesota - Duluth, Masters In Advocacy and Political Leadership department, teaching a course in Nonprofit Advocacy and Lobbying.

Lori McClung
Lori McClung is the Principal at Advocacy & Communication Solutions, where she directs strategic communication planning, government relations and advocacy efforts, policy analysis and strategy development for ACS clients. Lori has been involved in youth policy and advocacy for more than 10 years. She was formerly a Senior Fellow for education and youth development issues for The Center for Community Solutions. In this role she was responsible for advocating on primary and secondary education issues at the local, state and national level; advocating on youth development issues; and leading a statewide campaign to significantly increase the State of Ohio's investment in early care and education. She also served as Associate Director of Community Solutions.

Previously, Lori was Director of Government Affairs for the Cleveland Municipal School District. In this role, she secured $6 Million in Capital funding from the State of Ohio for the district and successfully lobbied to halt proposed rule changes by the Federal Communications Commission that would have cut $70 million in educational technology funding. In addition, Lori has been an advocate for a child-welfare agency, successfully coordinated a county mental health levy, and was the campaign press secretary for a member of Congress. Lori also was a reporter for two daily newspapers focusing on crime and political issues.

Lori is involved in a diverse group of activities, including serving on the board of the Greater Cleveland Media Development Corporation, the Coalition for Greater Cleveland's Children, the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, and the national board of Parents for Public Schools. She received a "Friend of Public Education" award from the Ohio Federation of Teachers in 2005 and an award from the Cleveland Rape Crisis Center in 2002 for her outstanding volunteer work. She also led a successful advocacy effort to raise $200 million more in the state budget for early care and education. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communications and a Certificate in Journalism from the University of Cincinnati.

Roy Mitchell
Roy Mitchell is the Director of Advocacy for the Sisters of Mercy Health System. In that capacity he provides technical advice to advocates in hospitals and integrated health delivery systems located in six states as well as oversees the Mississippi Health Advocacy Program. Roy is a member of the State Bar of California with extensive public interest advocacy experience in direct legal services, community organizing and advocacy. Roy has staffed and supervised legal clinics for domestic violence victims, low-income housing tenants, Medicaid and welfare recipients and seniors in both urban and rural settings. He has organized several statewide coalitions and initiatives, and successfully promulgated health and welfare legislation.

Roy is a Mississippi native where he received a bachelor's degree in public administration form the University of Mississippi. He is also a graduate of New College of California School of Law (San Francisco, CA), the nation's oldest public interest law school. His previous employers include the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County and the San Francisco Neighborhood Legal Assistance Foundation.

After graduating from law school, Roy staffed and supervised legal clinics for low-income populations in northern and southern California. In 1996, he returned to his home state of Mississippi, where he continues to organize public interest initiatives and advocate for improved health and welfare legislation. He has served as the consumer's representative on numerous Medicaid, Human Services, and Health Department committees and task forces.

Jason Sabo
Jason is the Senior Vice President for Public Policy of United Ways of Texas and the Chief Operating Officer of Frontera 501 - a public affairs firm serving forward-thinking nonprofit organizations.  Jason is a highly regarded political organizer and strategist and has advised child advocates in more than 20 states in the last two years.

Prior to joining United Way and launching Frontera 501, Jason worked in and around the Texas capitol for five years as a policy analyst and lobbyist.  Jason has worked as a teacher in the United States and Brazil and has also coordinated community-based youth employment, dropout prevention, and immigrant family literacy programs.  Jason is a Fellow of the Center in the Public Interest and the Center for Public Policy Dispute Resolution.

In September 2008 Jason received the Public Interest Rising Star Award from OMB Watch in Washington, D.C. Jason sits on the Board of Directors of Communities In Schools - Central Texas and is the co-chair of the Texas Early Childhood Education Coalition.  Jason holds a Master's degree in History from Indiana University and lives in Austin, TX.

Erin Skene
Erin serves as Director of the Michigan Public Policy Initiative (MPPI). The Initiative is a program of the Michigan Nonprofit Association, affiliated with the Council of Michigan Foundations. The vision of MPPI is to promote involvement of Michigan's nonprofit community in public policy by training its leaders, building the capacity of its organizations and encouraging collaboration with public policy makers. With MPPI, Erin develops programming, publications and trainings to educate policy makers on issues that impact nonprofits and to encourage nonprofits' involvement in advocacy and lobbying.

Erin also advocates on behalf of the nonprofit community to legislators and the media. Erin authored Michigan's Public Policy Handbook: A Lobbying Guide for 501(c)(3) Nonprofits and Nonprofit Advocacy: A Michigan Primer. She also prepared the publications Setting the Record Straight on Michigan's Nonprofit Community and Guide to Getting Good Media Coverage. Erin locates and obtains funding for the Initiative, and works with academics to encourage research on the sector. Before becoming Director of MPPI, she acted as the Associate Director of MPPI and has worked with the Michigan Nonprofit Association for over five years.

Erin previously held the position of Statewide Project Coordinator on Campaign Finance Reform for the League of Women Voters of Michigan. As project coordinator, she was responsible for educating legislators, developing and implementing a media campaign, recruiting volunteers and designing trainings to educate volunteers on grassroots advocacy techniques. The year-long project culminated with an interactive event linking seven sites across the state to discuss whether campaign finance reform is needed in Michigan.

Erin graduated from Michigan State University (MSU) with Bachelor's degrees in English and Journalism. Erin also holds a Certificate in Fundraising Management from the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University and a Master's in Public Administration from Western Michigan University. She currently serves on the board of trustees for the Boarshead Theater - a regional equity theater in Lansing, MI; on the board of directors of the Mid-Michigan chapter of the American Society for Public Administration; and on the public policy committees of the Michigan Association of United Ways and the National Council of Nonprofit Associations (co-chair).

Tracy Velázquez
Tracy is executive director of the Justice Policy Institute. JPI works to promote effective solutions to social problems and is dedicated to ending society's reliance on incarceration. Tracy and JPI shape this debate by educating the public, making research more available and employing communication advocacy to promote incarceration alternatives. Tracy was most recently senior program associate at the Vera Institute of Justice's Center on Sentencing and Corrections, where she worked with policymakers on expanding the diversion of people with substance abuse problems involved in the criminal justice system and implementing evidence-based supervision practices that improve the success rates of people re-entering the community from prison.

Tracy is the former executive director of the Montana Mental Health Association, a statewide nonprofit organization that educates and advocates for the mental health of all Montanans. Prior to this she was a principal and founder of Commonwealth Consulting, in which provided training and technical assistance to community and faith based organizations, universities, and local, state and national government agencies since 2001. Prior to founding Commonweal Consulting, Tracy worked in management, program administration, public policy advocacy and fund development for a variety of nonprofit organizations, including the American Cancer Society, Montana State University Foundation, The Science Place (Dallas, TX), Kids' Turn (San Francisco) and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Tracy has lobbied on a variety of public policy issues on the national and state level, including public health and environmental justice. In the most recent Montana legislative session, Tracy successfully lobbied for state funding to provide care for victims of asbestos-related diseases. Other successes include lobbying former Governor Judy Martz (R) to create a public policy work group to address alcohol and drug use, and to assemble a task force of county, state and national health officials to address the unmet health needs of asbestos victims in Libby, Montana. Through the Robert Wood Johnson-funded "A Matter of Degree" project, Tracy worked with universities around the country trying to reduce underage and binge drinking though public policy solutions.

Tracy held an appointment as an adjunct instructor in political science at Montana State University and has been a candidate for the Montana Legislature and the United States Congress, and was elected vice-chair of the Montana Democratic Party in July 2005. Tracy has also been a community activist on public health issues, playing a key role in the passage of Bozeman's ordinance on smoke-free public places and the adoption of policies to curb underage drinking. Tracy has a Master of Public Administration degree from Montana State University and a Bachelor's degree from Harvard University.