Jenessy is a Program Manager, Learning and Development, at Acacia, where she works to build legal representation capacity and broaden expertise among legal service providers working with unaccompanied children. Jenessy earned her J.D. from Loyola University Chicago School of Law and her bachelor’s in international studies and French from the University of Miami.

Her commitment to promoting access to justice extends beyond borders. In Cambodia, Jenessy served as a program officer with International Bridges to Justice, an NGO dedicated to delivering justice services in rural provinces. She also taught legal writing and ethics to Cambodian students as a lecturer at a local university and monitored trials related to the right of freedom of expression as a consultant with the American Bar Association for Human Rights. An interest in global advocacy and teaching led her to Tbilisi, Georgia, where she worked as a lecturer for the Open Society Foundation’s Academic Summer Scholarship Program.

Outside of her professional pursuits, Jenessy loves exploring the world of herbalism and crafting plant medicine to find natural remedies.