Our Team

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Andrew Baranoski joined PIRC in January 2020 as Executive Director. He has long been committed to refugee and asylee resettlement and access to legal services for all immigrants. Prior to joining PIRC, Andrew proudly served as the Executive Director of the American Civic Association in Binghamton, New York from 2008 until 2015. Most recently, he worked in higher education at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, South Carolina. He graduated from Binghamton University with a BA in anthropology. After college, he became certified as a paralegal at Syracuse University. Later he earned his Master of Public Administration degree at Binghamton University and completed a year-long graduate internship at the Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York.

Andrew was born and raised in Snyder County, PA. Andrew and his wife Barbara are excited to return to Pennsylvania to be close to family and friends. They enjoy traveling and all genres of music and often combine these two past-times attending music festivals abroad and across the USA.

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Elizabeth Miller joined PIRC in 2022 as Development Director, previously serving the organization as Office Manager/Development Manager, Office Manager, and intern over a period of 10 years. Miller received her Bachelor’s in Sociology from Goucher College, with a concentration in Social Justice and Minor in Communications and Media Studies and earned her Master’s degree in Social Justice and Human Rights from Arizona State University, with a Concentration in NGO Management. She is a Lancaster native, and most recently worked with the Mennonite Economic Development Associates as Strategic Engagement Coordinator. She is passionate about human rights issues, specifically those surrounding immigrant rights and gender equity. Miller serves on the board of the Lancaster-based Feakins Foundation.

REMOVAL DEFENSE PROGRAMS

MANAGING ATTORNEY | REMOVAL DEFENSE PROGRAMS

Ryan Brunsink is a managing attorney for the Removal Defense Programs. He joined PIRC in March of 2015, after serving as a judicial fellow in the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia where he regularly drafted legal opinions. Ryan graduated, cum laude, from Pepperdine University School of Law in May of 2014. At Pepperdine, Ryan successfully represented vulnerable clients with fear-based claims through Pepperdine’s Asylum and Refugee Clinic. He worked as a summer law clerk at the Law Offices of Carl Shusterman, a prominent immigration firm in Los Angeles, and provided pro bono legal aid to indigent clients through Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles during his time in law school. Ryan obtained a BA in Economics and Religious Studies at the University of Virginia in 2008, and remains an avid Wahoo fan. Ryan is proficient in Spanish.

SUPERVISING ATTORNEY | REMOVAL DEFENSE PROGRAMS

Ben Hooper joined the Removal Defense Programs at PIRC in January 2018. As a legal aid attorney and manager since 1999, Ben’s advocacy work has included federally subsidized housing, mortgage foreclosure, domestic violence and immigration. Immediately prior to joining PIRC, Ben worked at the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence where he coordinated the Civil Legal Representation Initiative, providing legal service to victims of domestic violence in twenty-two counties across Pennsylvania. Ben earned his J.D. degree from Northeastern University, and a B.A. in Political Science at Binghamton University.

STAFF ATTORNEY | REMOVAL DEFENSE PROGRAMS

Yarima Gonzalez Crespo joined the Removal Defense Program at PIRC in September 2022. She earned her J.D. from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, School of Law in 2019 and is admitted to practice law in Puerto Rico. As part of her J.D., she took courses in Immigration Law, Therapeutic Justice, Appellate Practice and Human Rights Advocacy and Humanitarian Issues. She also worked with the Juvenile Drug Court Program and volunteered with Amnesty International with the “Know Your Rights” campaign. As an attorney, she has done mostly criminal defense work, emphasizing in the appellate practice. Yarima has worked for various nonprofit organizations, mostly in the Human Rights field. She is a member of the Puerto Rico’s Lawyer’s Guild and candidate for the Federal Bar Exam for the San Juan, PR District. Yarima is a native Spanish speaker.

LEGAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR/DOJ ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE

Samantha Naranjo-Gonzalez joined PIRC in 2020 as Office Manager and assisted with Citizenship Coordination along the way. She graduated from HACC with a degree in Paralegal Studies and received DOJ Accreditation in 2022. She is fluent in Spanish and coordinates all aspects of the Legal Orientation Program which provides education to immigrants in detention in Pennsylvania. Samantha is passionate about immigration law and helping other immigrants achieve their dreams.

LEGAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM MANAGER/SENIOR DOJ FULLY ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE

Fernanda Hernandez has worked with the Removal Defense team since joining PIRC in 2016. She graduated HACC with a degree in Behavioral and Social Sciences, with a concentration on Paralegal Studies in 2016, and earned her Bachelor degree in Applied Science in Technical Leadership from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania in 2019. Fernanda is fluent in Spanish, and received her DOJ accreditation in early 2018.

After getting her partial accreditation, she started providing legal orientation classes to detained immigrants at York County Prison and Berks County Residential Center, continuing to do so today at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center & Clinton County Correctional Facility. Now with full Department of Justice Accreditation, Fernanda hopes to start working towards not providing education to immigrants in detention but to also help them fight for their freedom, representing them in front of an immigration court.

At PIRC, Ms. Hernandez provides remote and in-person classes for immigrants in detention to inform them of their rights and what to to expect in immigration court. She also manages the Legal Orientation Program (LOP), from scheduling in-person services all the way to stakeholders’ meetings such as ICE, EOIR, and detention facility staff. Fernanda would love to have more capacity or partner with other organizations to refer detained immigrants who are PA residents and to collaborate on a bond project – currently the need for detained representation and bond help far outweighs the capacity among organizations throughout the state.

LEGAL ORIENTATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR

Gabriela Menjivar started with PIRC in 2023. She graduated from Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) in 2020 with an associate degree in paralegal studies. Gabriela is currently attending Central Penn with a major in Legal Studies and is planning to attend law school with the end goal of becoming an immigration attorney. She decided to join PIRC because immigration is something that is very close to her heart, and it is an organization where she believe she will be able to help make a change. Gabriela has a 4-month-old daughter, a husband and a very energetic Australian Shepard.

At PIRC, Gabriela is the Legal Orientation Program Coordinator where she will be providing operational support services for PIRC’s Removal Defense Programs, primarily the LOP.

PA IMMIGRANT FAMILY UNITY PROJECT COORDINATOR

Yomayra Burgos started with PIRC in 2022 as the PA Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP) coordinator. Born and raised in Lancaster, PA Ms. Burgos is Puerto Rican/Peruvian, and fluent in Spanish. She earned her bachelor’s in 2018 from Millersville University with a degree in Geography and Latino Studies. In 2018 she also conducted community outreach through her internship with the Jess King for Congress campaign. For years Ms. Burgos mentored young women pursuing their higher educational goals, a part of the Miss Hispanidad Scholarship Program (Latin American Alliance). Yomayra Burgos is committed to serving the immigrant community.

COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

MANAGING ATTORNEY | COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Diana Bieber Locke rejoined PIRC in January 2021 as a supervising attorney in Community Programs, having previously worked at PIRC during the development of the Immigrant Survivors Project. She brings over ten years’ experience in immigration legal representation for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking and has provided trainings on this topic across the state. Prior to law school, Ms. Bieber Locke worked as part of an Americorps volunteer program in southern Colorado where she helped initiate the San Luis Valley Immigrant Resource Center and successfully applied for its DOJ recognition. Ms. Bieber Locke earned her law degree cum laude from New York University School of Law and her undergraduate degree in English Literature and Sociology/Anthropology with a concentration in Peace and Conflict Studies from Swarthmore College. She has studied and worked in Peru, Colombia, and the Netherlands and is proficient in Spanish.

MEDICAL-LEGAL PARTNERSHIP ATTORNEY & COMMUNITY RESPONSE PROJECT ATTORNEY

Melissa Vega joined Removal Defense Programs at PIRC in April 2019. She transitioned to the newly created hybrid position of Medical-Legal Partnership Attorney & Community Response Project Attorney in September 2023. Prior to joining PIRC, Melissa had clerked for an appellate judge and been a sole practitioner of immigration law. Melissa is fluent in Spanish.

As the Medical-Legal Partnership Attorney, Melissa receives referrals from WellSpan Health Special Programs to assist medically and financially vulnerable patients with a variety of immigration law issues. As Community Response Project Attorney, she works with community partners to identify and assist unrepresented persons in York County with urgent and immediate immigration issues. Melissa, who is without a doubt a “people person,” is grateful to be uniquely positioned at the forefront of something new and exciting for immigrants in York County.

STATEWIDE LIAISON/SENIOR DOJ ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE | IMMIGRANT SURVIVORS PROJECT

Sarah Martin-Torres is the State Liaison for the Immigrant Survivors Project at the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center. She holds a master’s degree in social work from Temple University and has been providing immigration legal services to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking for nearly a decade as a Department of Justice Accredited Representative. Ms. Martin-Torres also coordinates the Immigrant Survivors Advocate Network (ISAN) and is fluent in Spanish.

LEGAL ADVOCATE/DOJ ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE | IMMIGRANT SUVRIVORS PROJECT

Rosa Perez-Lupian graduated from Delone Catholic High School in 1992 and attended DeVry University. She is the daughter of Mexican immigrant parents. In 2005, she began her 12 year career as Bilingual Client Advocate and Community Education Coordinator at YWCA Hanover Safe Home, where she established a robust program of community outreach, speaking to thousands of students as well as adult groups about healthy relationships and intimate partner violence. While developing her skills as an advocate, Mr. Perez-Lupian found that assisting immigrant victims of crime brought deep satisfaction. Through this work, she formed a strong bond with the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center, where she began to work in November 2017.

LEGAL ADVOCATE/DOJ ACCREDITED REPRESENTATIVE | IMMIGRANT SURVIVORS PROJECT

Jazmin H. Hernandez joined PIRC in August 2019 as a Citizenship Coordinator. Jazmin is the daughter of Mexican parents who brought her to the U.S. in 2008 when she was 11 years old. She earned her Associate in Applied Science in Paralegal Studies in June 2017. Jazmin continued her education at Central Penn College and graduated in March 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies. She worked as a paralegal for a private law firm assisting in family petitions, asylum, and removal proceedings. She is passionate about helping the immigrant community as she is an immigrant herself and knows the obstacles and challenges they face. Jazmin is fluent in Spanish.

OFFICE MANAGER & ADVOCATE

Minerva Orengo-Costa joined PIRC in December 2022 as Office Manager/ISP Coordinator. Prior to joining PIRC, Minerva worked in different fields involving administrative work, customer service, and quality control. Minerva is currently pursuing DOJ Accreditation to work closer with immigrants in their immigration journey. She is a native Spanish speaker and fully bilingual. Her diverse background alongside her passion for access to justice, motivates her every day to go above and beyond to support the immigrant community, the organization and its mission.

COORDINATOR | IMMIGRANT SURVIVORS PROJECT

Dalia Berroa joined PIRC in early 2024. She was born in the Dominican Republic and was brought to the US by her parents in 1998 at the age of six. Dalia completed my associate degree in early childhood education online through Ashford University. She taught preschool for 10 years and managed a childcare center for 4 years before deciding to make a change and explore immigration law. She has always enjoyed helping others.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Kimberly Mahaffy, Ph.D.

Board President

Millersville University

Professor of Sociology

Amy Chamberlin

Board Vice President

Family First Health

Senior Director of Development

David Corman

Secretary

Family First Health

Manager of Donor Relations

Sonia Wise, Esq.

Adams County Public Defender’s Office

Attorney

Marilyn Neuberger

Teacher of English as a Second Language

Community Volunteer

Gabriela Dehart

York City School District

Bilingual Outreach Worker

Rebecca Garcia

Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN)

Affiliate and Resources Manager

Angus Love, Esq.

Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project

Emeritus Director

Komal Patel

Members 1^st FCU

Commercial Relationship Manager

George Stoltzfus

Retired Physician and Administrator

Tamara Shehadeh-Cope

Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission

Attorney/Hearing Examiner