Robin R. Runge, Esq.
Director

Robin R. Runge, Esq. is the Director of the Commission on Domestic Violence at the American Bar Association. As Director, she manages all aspects of Commission programming with the mission of improving access to justice for domestic violence victims by mobilizing the legal profession, including: fundraising, budget management, staff recruitment and management, program development and policy development. She speaks nationally, provides trainings, and writes articles on various aspects of domestic violence and the legal response to domestic violence including the employment rights of domestic violence victims. Robin has been a domestic violence victim advocate for sixteen years and practiced employment law for five years with a focus on women’s rights in employment, specifically the Family and Medical Leave Act, Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act and employment protections for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Robin is a nationally-recognized expert on the employment rights of victims and speaks and provides trainings regularly on these issues. She has co-authored several articles on employment law and domestic violence, and has worked on state and federal legislation providing job-guaranteed leave from work, unemployment insurance and anti-discrimination in employment for domestic violence and sexual assault victims.

Previously, Robin was Deputy Director and Coordinator of the Program on Women’s Employment Rights (POWER) at the D.C. Employment Justice Center and the coordinator of the Domestic Violence and Employment Project at the Employment Law Center, Legal Aid Society of San Francisco. Robin currently serves on the advisory board of the Corporate Alliance to End Partner Violence (CAEPV) and the Women’s Information Network as well as a member of the Board of Directors of the District Safe Housing Alliance (DASH). She was also appointed to the Washington, DC Mayor’s Commission on Women in 2006. Robin is currently an Associate Professorial Lecturer in Law at The George Washington University Law School teaching Public Interest Lawyering and an Adjunct Professor at The American University Washington College of Law where she teaches Domestic Violence Law.

Robin is a member of the California Bar and District of Columbia Bar. She graduated from The George Washington University Law School where she received the West Publishing Award for Clinical Achievement in Family Law and the Baer Award for Individual Excellence. She received her B.A. in History and French, cum laude, from Wellesley College. Robin is from Collinsville, Illinois, outside of St. Louis, Missouri.

Rebecca Henry
Senior Staff Attorney

Rebecca Henry is the Senior Staff Attorney at the Commission, where she is responsible for developing and implementing technical assistance programs for civil attorneys with a domestic violence practice.

Rebecca has been advocating for victims since 1998, first as a legal services fellow representing DV survivors and their children in complex family matters, and then as Staff Attorney and Project Director of the OVW-funded Elder Justice Project. She is a frequent presenter on issues of domestic violence and elder abuse intervention and coordinated community response for civil attorneys and social service providers in both the DV and elder services communities. She served as a consultant for the Penobscot Indian Nation as they drafted their tribal elder abuse statute, and has served on several local and state-wide elder abuse/domestic violence coalitions and boards.

Rebecca is admitted to the New York and Maine bars, and clerked on the Sixth Circuit Court of Federal Appeals in Nashville, TN. She received her law degree from New York University, where she received the New York Bar Association’s Legal Ethics Award and served as a senior editor of the Review of Law and Social Change. Rebecca received her MA in philosophy and feminist theory from the University of Minnesota.

Kelly Behre
Staff Attorney

Kelly Behre has worked or volunteered with domestic violence and sexual assault programs since 1994. Kelly came to the Commission from the Sexual Assault Legal Institute, where she provided civil legal representation to survivors of sexual assault and provided trainings for professionals who work with survivors.

Prior to law school, Kelly researched issues involving the Appalachian region and rural sociology as a graduate student at the University of Kentucky. Kelly also worked as the Outreach Coordinator for the YWCA Spouse Abuse Center, where she worked to increase community support and understanding about domestic violence and provided counseling and support groups for victims of domestic violence.

Kelly is a member of the Maryland bar, and clerked for the Circuit Court of Frederick County, Maryland. She received her JD from Washington and Lee University School of Law, where she was awarded the Virginia Bar Family Section Award. Kelly received a BA in Sociology from Emory University.

Guilherme Roschke
Staff Attorney

Guilherme Roschke joined the Commission in September of 2008, where he works on the Commission's legal education programs, as well as providing technical assistance on electronic privacy and cyberlaw issues to domestic violence attorneys. Prior to joining the Commission, Guilherme was a Skadden Fellow at the Electronic Privacy Information Center in Washington, DC. His fellowship focused on protecting the privacy of victims of domestic violence.

Prior to law school Guilherme was a computer programmer with experience in corporate, non-profit and scientific environments. He often volunteered his technical and organizing skills for media activism projects.

Guilherme is a member of the DC and NY bars. He received his JD from The George Washington University Law School. Guilherme received a BA in mathematics and economics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Mayme Donohue
Program Assistant

Mayme joined the Commission in February of 2008 as a Project Assistant, after working on Capitol Hill doing presswork for a Congressmember. A recent graduate of the University of Virginia, Mayme gained valuable experience working with several organizations to eradicate the prevalence of sexual assault on the grounds of the University and also provide direct support to victims of sexual assault. She devoted her extracurricular time to supporting and advocating for women at the University level, as well as in the greater Charlottesville community. She spent time abroad in Spain studying the language and the culture and graduated from UVA in May of 2007 with a B.A. in Spanish.

She is now pursuing a Master’s Degree in Political Management from The George Washington University and plans to graduate from that program in December 2008.

Deborah Whang
Program Assistant

Deborah Whang joined the Commission in August of 2008 as a Project Assistant. Previously she worked at the National Council for International Visitors as an event planner, and interned at Shared Hope International where she developed a passion for combating trafficking in persons, and women's rights. Deborah received a B.A. with Honors from Pepperdine University in International Relations and plans to attend law school in the near future. While in college, Deborah was active in the campus chapters of International Justice Mission and Amnesty International. She also worked at the student volunteer center, and as a research assistant for the International Studies Division where she helped create a course on Islamic Asia. Originally from Denver, Colorado, she enjoys hiking, running, and reading in her spare time.

Amanda Kloer
Project Coordinator

Amanda joined the Commission in November 2007 to develop national and international training and educational materials to improve legal services for LGBT domestic violence victims and human trafficking victims. Amanda has been advocating for sexually exploited women and children since 2002, including founding and leading the local grassroots advocacy organization Students Opposing Slavery in 2004 and working with at-risk street youth in Tanzania and Zanzibar in 2005.

Prior to joining the Commission, Amanda conducted research and developed educational outreach materials on international and domestic sex trafficking for Shared Hope International. She has participated in the creation of several documentary films about sex trafficking and gender identity, as well as co-authored several reports on human trafficking.

Amanda received a BA with Honors from Elon University in International Studies and Social Justice Theory.

LaVonne Meyer
Legal Advocacy Fellow

LaVonne joined the Commission as its ABA/Avon Foundation National Domestic Violence Legal Advocacy Fellow. In this role, she researches and compiles data for the Commission’s Domestic Violence Pro Bono Directory, an online resource for domestic violence survivors and attorneys who provide civil legal services to survivors nationwide.

LaVonne began volunteering with domestic violence service agencies in 1995. She received her JD from Chicago-Kent College of Law, where she earned a certificate in Public Interest Law. She also received the Dean’s Distinguished Public Service Award and the Public Interest Resource Center’s Certificate of Service. While at Chicago-Kent, LaVonne was a member of a research cohort that studied gender dynamics in legal academia. She also volunteered in the Civil Rights Bureau at the Office of the Illinois Attorney General. As an Equal Justice America Fellow, LaVonne worked on behalf of incarcerated clients in Baltimore to secure adequate health care services and improved conditions of confinement.

Prior to law school, LaVonne worked as a journalist in Minnesota. She received her BA in Print Journalism from the University of St. Thomas.