Staff from the ACLU of New Mexico can provide a lively discussion for your meeting, synagogue, church, classroom or other forum. Please click here to enter your request, or, if urgent, call (505) 266-5915 ext 1003.
ACLU-NM STAFF
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Peter G. Simonson
For eight years Peter Simonson has served as Executive Director for the ACLU of New Mexico, the largest civil liberties organization in the state. As primary spokesperson for the ACLU of New Mexico, Peter develops all policy positions and represents the organization in the media and in public on such diverse topics as national security, “zero tolerance” in public schools, racial profiling, separation of church and state, and the protection of free speech rights. Under Peter's leadership the organization has grown from 2,500 members in 2001 to over 6,000 today. Its legal docket has grown from a dozen civil liberties cases a year to well over 30.
Prior to the ACLU, Peter directed a project to improve immigrants’ access to health care in Albuquerque. For five years he worked in sustainable development and ethnographic research in the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica. Peter earned his Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the University of Michigan in 1994. He is a native of Albuquerque.
Media Contact: 505-266-5915 ext. 1003
To Book a Speaking Engagement: wpotter@aclu-nm.org
Kelly Camlin Shingler serves as the Associate Director for the ACLU of New Mexico. Kelly has a great deal of experience in the mental health and social services fields, including work in clinical research, housing programs, and as Clinical Director of a mental health center. Kelly has been a longstanding advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities and for safe and affordable housing for everyone.
Kelly earned her Masters degree in Social Work from Case Western Reserve University in 2000 and is Independently Licensed in New Mexico.
Erin Pearson joined the staff as Administrative Secretary in 2007. Outside of her work at the ACLU of New Mexico, she is a working artist and metalsmith, and has a 14 year-old daughter. Prior to working for the ACLU, Erin worked in the technical support department for BlackBerry. She attended the University of New Mexico and studied metalsmithing in Tucson, Arizona.
Whitney Potter, Communications Manager for the ACLU of New Mexico, joined the staff in 2006. With experience in media relations, graphic design and coalition building, Whitney is able to align her passion for public relations with her commitment to social justice and public policy. Prior to joining the ACLU, Whitney was the Communications and Publications Associate for the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, an economic research organization in Washington, DC. In 2005, she served on the National Coordinating Committee for the Younger Women's Task Force. Whitney received a Bachelor’s of Arts from the University of New Mexico. Outside of work, she enjoys skiing and mountain biking.
Jennifer Rose, LGBT Field Organizer
Jennifer Rose serves as the LGBT Field Organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico. Prior to joining the staff at the ACLU in August 2007, Jennifer has been working as a consultant, locally and nationally, to provide training and technical assistance on the issues of family violence, oppression, community organizing, and LGBTQ issues. She has worked in partnership with Praxis International, The Family Violence Prevention Fund, The Walnut Avenue Women’s Center, and The Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness. She received her BA in Anthropology and Women’s Studies from Fort Lewis College and her MSW from San Jose State University.
George Bach serves as the Staff Attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico. Prior to joining the staff of the ACLU in February 2005, George worked for labor lawyer Lee Peifer, litigating civil rights, union-side labor law, and employee-side employment law. He earned his undergraduate degree from Centre College of Kentucky and his law degree from the University of New Mexico School of Law.
George is a former president of the New Mexico Lesbian and Gay Lawyers
Association. Outside work, he performs regularly in Albuquerque community theatre with the notorious, and indiscriminately offensive, comedy sketch troupe “Eat, Drink, and Be Larry”.
Brendan Egan, Law Clerk
Brendan Egan is currently in law school at the University of New Mexico, but spends as much time as he can working with George Bach and other cooperating attorneys.
Brendan earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame and afterward put it to good use working as a bicycle courier in San Francisco. As a courier, Brendan was a member of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and was active in unionizing other courier companies. Prior to starting law school, Brendan was the director of a small shelter for undocumented immigrants in El Paso, Texas.
Diane Wood serves as Director of the ACLU of New Mexico’s Northern Regional Office and as the organization’s principal advocate at the state legislature.
Diane has lobbied in New Mexico since 1979. Prior to joining the ACLU of New Mexico, she ran a government relations firm that represented a number of public interest clients, including the ACLU of New Mexico. She has also served as the Executive Director of the New Mexico Women’s Foundation and the New Mexico Commission on the Status of Women. Diane began her career in the retail industry, eventually working for the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1564 as Organizer, Union Representative and then Political and Public Affairs Director.
Elida Nuñez, Administrative Assistant
A New Mexico native “Edie” Elida Nuñez serves as the Administrative Assistant to the Northern Regional Office of ACLU of New Mexico. Edie recently retired from state government, after working for city, county and state in the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government. To list a few, her experience includes the Office of the Attorney General, Office of the Governor, twelve Legislative Sessions, Public Regulation Commission, First Judicial District Attorney and Mayor’s Office. Edie is a member and volunteer of several organizations in Santa Fe.
Maria Nape serves as the Director of the ACLU’s New Mexico’s Southern Regional Office, which focuses primarily on border and immigration issues. Prior to joining the ACLU in June of 2007, Maria spent several years working as an advocate for the rights of migrant farmworkers as Director of the Migrant Farmworker Project at Legal Services Organization of Indiana and as Executive Director of the Farmworker Coordinating Council of Palm Beach County, Florida. She most recently served on the faculty of Florida Atlantic University’s School of Public Administration teaching administrative law and other law courses.
Maria earned her undergraduate degree at Purdue University and her law degree from Indiana University School of Law at Indianapolis.
Emily Carey , Program Coordinator
Emily Carey, Program Coordinator for the Southern Regional Office & Border Rights Project, joined the ACLU of New Mexico staff in 2008. She has been walking with immigrant and border communities in the pursuit of human and civil rights for years. Emily volunteered with a migrant shelter for women in Ciudad Juarez and later served as coordinator for a similar migrant shelter in El Paso, TX. She then worked in Tijuana for a bi-national non-profit focused on sustainable development and social justice education. Following the attainment of her MSW from the University of Michigan where she was able to apply her concentration in Community Organizing/Community & Social Systems to community based policy advocacy with immigrant communities in Detroit as well with a human rights organization along the El Paso border, Emily worked with asylees and refugees, some in ICE detention in the Los Angeles area. She is pleased to be back walking with border communities, and even more pleased to call the region home.
Susana Casillas, Administrative Secretary
Susana Casillas is the Administrative Secretary for the ACLU of New Mexico Southern Regional Office and Border Rights Project. Prior to joining the ACLU she worked for La Casa, Inc. a domestic violence shelter, as a Legal Assistant. Assisted with Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) petitions and Crime Victims Reparation Commission (CVRC) petitions. Susana attended, New Mexico State University and obtained a degree in Criminal Justice. She has worked with the communities in rural areas and is familiar with the border region.
For eight years Peter Simonson has served as Executive Director for the ACLU of New Mexico, the largest civil liberties organization in the state. As primary spokesperson for the ACLU of New Mexico, Peter develops all policy positions and represents the organization in the media and in public on such diverse topics as national security, “zero tolerance” in public schools, racial profiling, separation of church and state, and the protection of free speech rights. Under Peter's leadership the organization has grown from 2,500 members in 2001 to over 6,000 today. Its legal docket has grown from a dozen civil liberties cases a year to well over 30.
Kelly Camlin Shingler
Jennifer Rose, LGBT Field Organizer 
George Bach, Staff Attorney
Brendan Egan, Law Clerk
Diane Wood, Director, Northern Regional Office
Elida Nuñez, Administrative Assistant
Maria J. Nape, Director
Emily Carey , Program Coordinator
Susana Casillas, Administrative Secretary