Lisa Colpoys
Executive Director | Lisa Colpoys has been ILAO's Executive Director since January 2002, when she was promoted from Legal Content Manager, and has been with the organization since its inception in early 2001. Previously Lisa served as Director of Legal Services and as a Staff Attorney at CARPLS, and spent several years in private practice in Chicago as a sole practitioner. She serves on many national, state and local groups dealing with technology, the delivery of legal services, and self-represented persons. In 2003 Lisa was named one of “40 Under 40” Illinois Attorneys to Watch by the Law Bulletin Publishing Company. Lisa received her J.D. from Loyola University Chicago and a B.S. from Rutgers University.
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Teri Ross
Program Director | After serving as Illinois Legal Aid Online's Outreach Coordinator for 1 ½ years, Teri Ross was promoted to Program Director in December 2009. Her duties include overseeing the operations of the content, technology and outreach programs, fostering new and existing partnerships with community organizations, and developing new programs. She is the 2009 recipient of The Chicago Bar Foundation Anderson Fellowship. Prior to her ILAO work, Teri was a staff attorney at Prairie State Legal Services. She is a 2006 graduate of the DePaul College of Law. |
Viannie Bell
LiveHelp Program Coordinator | Viannie Bell is Illinois Legal Aid Online LiveHelp Program Coordinator. She is an AmeriCorps Vista Volunteer who holds a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Prior to joining ILAO she served as an AmeriCorps Team Leader for EducationWorks and interned as an Outreach Worker for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundations Black Male Engagement (BMe) Campaign. At Temple University she was a dedicated member of Main Campus Program Board where she held a community service chairperson position, a homecoming court dance choreographer and university events committee member where she assisted in planning major events such as Welcome Week and Spring Fling.
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Stacie Colston Patterson
Outreach Coordinator | Stacie is Illinois Legal Aid Online's Outreach Coordinator. She is a 2009 graduate of The John Marshall Law School. During law school, Stacie served at a PILI Intern and Law Clerk at Chicago Volunteer Legal Services. Her ILAO duties include collaborating with courts, circuit clerks, legal aid providers, and other community organizations to establish and support county-based legal self-help centers across Illinois. Stacie is responsible for managing ILAO’s education and outreach programs to its constituents with the goal of increasing the use of ILAO's websites. Stacie is on the junior board of Connections for Abused Women and their Children (CAWC).
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Gwendelyn Daniels
Director of Technology Development | As our Director of Technology Development, Gwen is responsible for all aspects of the software development lifecycle for Illinois Legal Aid Online's software applications, including specifications, design, managing outside developers, programming in ColdFusion, Flash/Flex, Javascript, CSS, and HTML, testing, and documentation. Prior to working at ILAO, Gwen spent eight years working at the Shriver Center. Gwen serves on the board of LSNTAP, was the 2004 recipient of NLADA's Innovations in Equal Justice Award, and is a 1998 graduate of the DePaul College of Law.
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Lindsay Ditto
Legal Content Manager
| As Legal Content Manager, Lindsay oversees all content published on IllinoisLegalAid.org. Prior to joining Illinois Legal Aid Online, Lindsay was an associate at Latham & Watkins where she focused on technology licensing while also dedicating significant time to pro bono projects. Lindsay received a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law and a B.A. from Emory University. Before attending law school, Lindsay served for two years with the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic and is fluent in Spanish.
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Jessica Gavlin
Finance Director
| As the Finance Director, Jessica oversees all areas of accounting and financial management for Illinois Legal Aid Online. Prior to joining ILAO, Jessica was a Senior Accounting Analyst at Tenneco, Inc. in the SEC Reporting and Consolidations group and a Senior Audit Associate in the Financial Institutions Group at Crowe Horwath LLP. She is a Certified Public Accountant and a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with an MS in Accounting in 2006.
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Samantha Kyrkostas
Development Associate
| Samantha serves as our Development Associate. She joins Illinois Legal Aid Online after two years serving with the Peace Corps in Ukraine. Prior to Peace Corps, Samantha worked in Overseas Operations in Boston. Her ILAO duties include grant writing, event planning, and donor relations. She is also staff liaison to ILAO’s Young Professional’s Board. Samantha holds a BA in English and French from Oberlin College. She is on the board of the Chicago Area Peace Corps Association and the Armenian International Women's Association. She speaks French, Russian, Ukrainian and Armenian.
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Cody Mennenoh
Multimedia Coordinator
| As the Multimedia Coordinator, Cody is responsible for creating Illinois Legal Aid Online's produced videos, overseeing webcasts, and managing the occasional graphic design project. Prior to his work with ILAO, Cody's experience includes the creation of videos, animations and graphic design for several organizations. These organizations covered topics from toys to furniture, fundraising projects, narrative short films and even a music video. He holds a B.F.A. in Digital Cinema from Northern Michigan University.
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Dina Nikitaides
Interactive Content Manager
| As the Interactive Content Manager, Dina oversees the development of interactive legal resources for all of Illinois Legal Aid Online's websites. Dina previously worked as the Program Coordinator for the Center for Access to Justice & Technology at Chicago-Kent, where she managed several technology related grants, oversaw development of the A2J Author software used to create automated documents, conducted nationwide trainings and outreach, and supervised the Self-Help Web Center in the Daley Center. Dina holds a J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law and a B.A. from the University of Michigan.
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Rene Paquin
Office Administrator
| Rene brings office administration experience from the manufacturing industry. She holds a BA in Humanities from Shimer College and is working toward an MS in Nonprofit Management at Spertus. Rene is an active volunteer, involved in environmental, economic development and social justice groups in her neighborhood. As office administrator Rene is responsible for the day to day operations of the office.
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Dennis Rios
Spanish Content and Outreach Coordinator
| Dennis is our first Spanish Content and Outreach Coordinator. He manages our Spanish language legal resources and outreach programs to Illinois' Hispanic communities. Dennis holds a J.D. from Mexico and a Master of Law from the University Of Georgia School of Law. He previously served as the managing partner of a U.S. law firm in Mexico City focused on immigration matters. He also worked for Mexico's Department of Foreign Relations and with the Xaverian Missionaries to assist low income and indigenous communities.
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Stephanie Villinski
Legal Content Manager | Stephanie oversees all content published for attorneys on IllinoisLegalAdvocate.org and IllinoisProBono.org. She graduated summa cum laude from Saint Mary’s College, and from DePaul University College of Law with Order of the Coif distinction. Prior to ILAO, Stephanie worked at the Community Justice Project in Pittsburgh and the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago. In her spare time, Stephanie enjoys practicing yoga as a certified teacher.
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