(From top left to bottom right: Aileen McGinley, Jennie Venable, DeAnn Major, Tony Sears, Michael Breeskin, Madelyne Snyder, Alexandra Andrews, Ken Dwenger)
Policy Advocacy
Aileen McGinley is the Executive Director of AdvocacyDenver. She has managed the organization for more than 14 years and served as Executive Director for the past nine years. Ms. McGinley has a B.A. in Liberal Arts and 30 years of experience in the field of developmental disabilities in three states. Her focus for the past 18 years is advocacy for individuals, systems change, and community development. She has administered various private and state-funded projects targeting systems change in the areas of family support, criminal justice, and self-determination.
Administration
Stacey Gottlieb is the Office Manager and Development Coordinator for AdvocacyDenver. Ms Gottlieb is a Denver native with a diploma from East High School as well as degrees in Literature from Yale and Brown. She has worked with numerous nonprofits as a volunteer, database manager, database consultant, development assistant and office manager. With her husband, Rick VanWie, she is raising a son and daughter who are (among other things) both DPS students and both on the autism spectrum. Stacey is very gratified to bring her skills and experience to the support of AdvocacyDenver.
Kaley Day is the Assistant to the Director of Operations and Development. She also serves as a Communications Intern for AdvocacyDenver. Kaley is a senior at the University of Denver, majoring in Strategic Communication with an emphasis in non-profit organizations and minoring in Sociology and International Studies. Kaley, a Colorado native, has an older brother with disabilities and has grown up in the advocacy community with a passionate interest in civil rights.
Individual Advocacy Program
Pam Bisceglia is an advocate for children. As a single parent of a child with a disability Pam gained practical experience regarding the resources that are available to Denver families. Problem solving, sensitivity, experience with the Denver community and knowledge of resources available to children and adults with disabilities are among her strengths. Her professional experience is marked by her devotion to individuals in need, first-hand knowledge of the operation of public school systems and their obligation under state and federal law.
DeAnn Major is the Director of Transitional Advocacy Services and Juvenile Justice Direct Advocacy and Policy Development. She brings nearly 20 years of experience working in the fields of disability, legal rights, and advocacy. Ms. Major attended the University of Northern Colorado, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary and Middle School Education. She has worked as a legal advocate in state institutional settings to promote community placements and monitoring for health and safety concerns. She is involved in criminal justice campaigns to end the criminalization of children.
Jennie Venable, MS, is an Advocate for Adults. Miss Venable holds a BA in Political Science from Guilford College and an MS in Parks and Recreation from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Jennie has advocated for the causes of inclusion and civil rights throughout her educational and professional careers. She is expanding her knowledge of systemic advocacy and is excited to be a part of the AdvocacyDenver community.
Ken Dwenger is an Advocate for Adults. He has a B.S. in Computer Science from Purdue University and 28 years of experience in the private sector; 20 years of this experience was in management. He was an active volunteer with Arc of Denver beginning in 1996, and upon retirement from the telecommunications industry in 2001, Mr. Dwenger began his work as an Adult Advocate and has worked at AdvocacyDenver for over 10 years. Ken has served as an advisor to the People First chapter in Denver (a self advocacy organization for people with developmental disabilities) for over 15 years. Mr. Dwenger has worked with Colorado Division for Developmental Disabilities on the Customer Satisfaction, Self-Determination, Quality Assurance and Critical Incident Tracking Committees. He currently serves as a member of the Child Protection Team with Denver Department of Human Services, a community oversight team which reviews all child protection referrals, insuring investigations are timely and thorough and the findings are appropriate.
Tony Sears is an Advocate for Adults with more than 10 years of service at AdvocacyDenver. Mr. Sears holds a BA in Psychology and has worked in the Mental Health field for over 19 years, the past ten years of which have been in the Developmental Disabilities field. Additionally, he works with public agencies and advocacy organizations in crisis intervention, criminal justice, dual diagnosis (Developmental Disabilities and Mental Health), and RTD’s Access-A-Ride Appeals Committee.
Center for Special Education Law
Michael Breeskin has been Counsel for AdvocacyDenver’s Center for Special Education Law since its inception in 2011. Prior to this, he was Counsel for AdvocacyDenver for eight years. Mr. Breeskin has a Juris Doctor from the Georgetown University Law Center and previously served as Senior Attorney of a non-profit organization designated by the Governor as the protection and advocacy System for people with disabilities in Colorado.
Health Care Advocacy Program
Catherine Strode is the Coordinator of the Health Care Advocacy Program for AdvocacyDenver. She holds an MPA from the University of Colorado Denver and a B.A. in Liberal Arts. She was a legislative aide and has worked on advocacy and communication campaigns with health care nonprofit organizations across the state. A former television news reporter and producer, she is an award-winning journalist. One of her health care documentaries, “The Healing Touch,” was a finalist in the New York Film Festival.
Madelyne Snyder, Director of Communications and Grant Development, received her B.A. in political science from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst in 2008. As a professional and a volunteer, Ms. Snyder has worked with several not-for-profit organizations that focus on making public health care readily available and accessible to communities. Currently, Madelyne is responsible for organizational communications, grant writing, database management, and support of the development processes.
Alex Andrews is the Health Care Research Advocate for AdvocacyDenver’s Health Care Advocacy Program. She holds a B.S. in psychology from Colorado State University and an M.A. in Child and Family Studies from Syracuse University. Mrs. Andrews has provided assistance for families and children throughout her work in the non-profit sector and has extensive experience conducting research in the social sciences.