EJS’ dynamic and talented team has recently grown a little larger. We would like to introduce you to the phenomenal four additions to our office:
Estela Lopez Gilliam – Coalitions Manager: Estela will be responsible for facilitating the 600-member Good Ally Collaborative and developing the Collaborative’s leadership and coalition planning. She will also assist EJS in realigning and reactivating the California Civil Rights Coalition.
Estela has worked with civil rights organizations serving low-income communities, immigrants and refugees, and marginalized communities for over twenty years. Most recently she has been working as a Staff Attorney with the Unified Family Court at the San Francisco Superior Court. She has also served as the Associate Director of California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, as a Staff Attorney with the San Francisco Superior Court Family Law Self-Help Center, and with the Public Defenders’ Office in Santa Clara County.
Estela received double degrees in Chicano Studies and Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley and her law degree from Santa Clara University School of Law.
Read more about Estela HERE.
Melissa Male – Communications Consultant: Melissa will be managing communications for EJS while our Director of Communications, Keith Kamisugi, is on sabbatical (returning in January).
Melissa brings with her a wealth of non-profit, government, and political experience, as well as a passion for advancing positive social, economic, and environmental change. Prior to joining EJS, Melissa was a Senior District Representative and District Communications Manager for former California State Senator Loni Hancock, whom she previously worked for in the State Assembly. She has also worked as a Legal Intern for Positive Resource Center, in San Francisco, as well as the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF), in Berkeley.
Melissa has served on numerous boards and commissions, including as the current Chair of the Board of Directors of The Center for Independent Living (TheCIL), which provides advocacy and services for people with disabilities.
Melissa received both her B.A. (Political Science) and her J.D. from U.C. Berkeley, and is a member of the California State Bar.
LAW CLERKS
Lauren Lystrup is focusing her time at EJS on youth rights in educational settings. She is a 3rd-year law student at UC Berkeley and a transfer student from UC Irvine School of Law, where she was active in the National Lawyers Guild, Native American Law Student Association, and a member of the Committee for Diversity and Inclusion.
Prior to law school, Lauren worked for youth empowerment organizations and on campaigns for inclusive programming and curriculum. She holds her M.A. in Social and Cultural Foundations of Education from DePaul University, in Chicago, and her B.A. in Feminist Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Ambria Mahomes is a 2nd-year law student at the University of San Francisco School of Law. She received her undergraduate degree from DePaul University, in Chicago.
Ambria chose law school hoping to advocate for people of color in underrepresented communities. She has developed an interest in litigation as well as a realization that the legal profession itself is in dire need of diversity. Ambria in the process of finding an area of practice that allows her to help at-risk communities while diversifying the field at large.