Cohort 2 Presenter and Mentor Bios

Elizabeth over sees public interest opportunities, in both the government and non-profit sectors, including fellowships. Additionally, Elizabeth is the primary manager of the office's online database management system. She received her JD from DePaul with a certificate in international and comparative law. While in law school, she served as the co-president of the Women's Law Caucus and the Public Interest Law Association, co-chaired PILA's auction board, and was a member of the Center for Public Interest Law Committee receiving the Distinguished Senior Service Award and Chancellor's Award for Service. She worked at the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago specializing in elder consumer protection issues, Chicago Public Schools engaging with compliance and ethics matters, and in Law Career Services as a public interest coordinator. Elizabeth graduated cum laude from Beloit College with a BA in international relations and a minor in religious studies. During her time at Beloit, she was employed as a career advisor for the Office of Field and Career Services and interned for the L.I.F.T. bilingual charter school.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Beloit College; JD, DePaul University College of Law

Email: eboe@depaul.edu

Michelle Brown is a Professor of Legal Practice at DePaul University College of Law. She co-directs DePaul's Legal Analysis, Research, and Communication program.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree and JD, University of Illinois

Email: mcue@depaul.edu

Cory Burke is the Assistant Director of Law Admissions and Associate Director of the First Generation Law Program at DePaul University College of Law, as well as a seasoned HR executive and admissions professional with over 15 years of leadership experience across global trading, financial services, and higher education. He supports access-driven initiatives and prospective law students at DePaul, drawing on a deep background in recruitment, compliance, and student advising. Previously, Cory led human resources strategy at several financial services firms and served as Associate Director of Admissions and Financial Aid and Interim Director of Admissions and Financial Aid at Michigan State University College of Law.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Juris Doctor, Michigan State University College of Law 

Email: cburke37@depaul.edu

Stephanie is currently privacy counsel at Meta where she advises on global privacy compliance for the Facebook and Instagram apps. Prior to Meta, Stephanie was part of a small privacy team at ZS Associates, Inc. where she handled incident response and third-party risk assessments, advised on global privacy matters, negotiated technology and privacy agreements, and oversaw the global privacy and security training. Stephanie holds numerous certifications from the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) and is a Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP) from the IAPP. Stephanie graduated from DePaul University College of Law in 2017. While at DePaul, she was A Vice President of the Appellate Moot Court Society and Editor-in-Chief of the DePaul Business and Commercial Law Journal. She received her Bachelor of Sciences from Drexel University in Entertainment and Arts Management in 2013.Outside of the law, Stephanie enjoys cooking and reading. She also manages her corgis Instagram account.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Drexel University; JD, DePaul College of Law

Email: stephaniecueman@gmail.com

Natalie has worked as a financial wellness educator for over sixteen years, 14 of which were at DePaul! She has experience in various areas of higher education including graduate and undergraduate financial aid, career development, student success, and wellness programming, Natalie believes the route to financial success includes understanding a student’s background while helping them to develop and reach their financial goals.   

Educaiton: Bachelor's Degree, Sarah Lawrence; Master's Degree, DePaul University

Email: ndaniels@accesslex.org

Zoe will be entering her third year at the DePaul University College of Law this August. She was a part of the DePaul BA/JD 3+3 program, where she received a Bachelors in English before entering the law school. She is a first generation law student and has focused her studies on intellectual property law through DePaul Law. She will also be assisting with the start of the new DePaul Decarceration Collective this coming school year as treasurer for the organization. Previously, Zoe has worked in DePaul University’s Career Center for four years, where she served as a mentor for a first year career readiness program. She is super excited to start as a FGLP fellow and cannot wait to meet the students. 

Education: Bachelor's Degree and 3rd Year Law Student, DePaul University (3+3 Law Program) 

Email: zespino1@depaul.edu

Alexandra is a partner at the family law firm Davis Friedman LLP, focusing on high-conflict divorce and child custody cases, orders of protection and guardianships. She has successfully negotiated and litigated numerous issues pertaining to pre-decree divorces and post-decree modifications, child-related matters such as attempted relocation and supervision of parenting time, orders of protection, and complex financial issues such as business valuation and determination of parties’ income. Alexandra has been named Super Lawyers Rising Star from 2022-2025.

Alexandra received her undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science. She attended DePaul University College of Law, graduating with a Certificate in Child and Family Law and being a first year Schiller DuCanto & Fleck family law fellow. While at DePaul, Alexandra was active in the formation of DePaul’s Child and Family Law Association, participated in DePaul University’s Family Law Clinic, and received the Benjamin Hooks Public Service Award for over 200 hours of service. Alexandra held an externship with the Domestic Violence Legal Clinic, using her 711 law student license to assist domestic violence victims in obtaining Orders of Protection.

Alexandra sits on the Schiller, DuCanto & Fleck Family Law Advisory Board of DePaul University College of Law.  She is Co-Chair of the Chicago Bar Association Domestic Violence Committee and the Alliance for Women.  She is in her 5th year sitting on the Young Professionals Board of Ascend Justice, serving as Vice Chair of Fundraising. 

Alexandra currently expands her philanthropic involvement beyond the law.  She sits on the Board of Directors of Chicago Gateway Green and is currently in her second term as Commodore of Diversey Yacht Club.  She is a dedicated Tri Delta, serving as a Collegiate District Officer and overseeing multiple chapters. When she is not in the courtroom, you can find her on the water enjoying Lake Michigan.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Vanderbilt University; JD, DePaul University College of Law

Email: agreenberg@davisfriedman.com 

Sean is an advisor within Ayco’s Family Office. In his role, he provides comprehensive financial advice to high net worth individuals and their families. Sean’s main areas of focus include income tax planning, philanthropy, risk management, investment services and multi-generational estate planning. Sean takes a hands-on approach, by not only providing strategic advice and planning concepts, but also assisting with implementation and ongoing oversight of each client’s financial affairs.

Sean joined Ayco in July 1999 and has held multiple positions throughout the firm prior to his current role in the Family Office.

Sean earned a degree in Finance (with honors) from the University of Illinois and also earned a Master in Science in Taxation (with distinction) from DePaul University.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, University of Illinois; Master’s Degree, DePaul University

Email: sean.koelbl@gs.com

Julie D. Lawton joined DePaul in 2011. She previously taught at Georgetown University Law Center. She received her JD, cum laude, from Howard University School of Law, LLM from Georgetown University Law Center, and BS in Business Administration (Finance), magna cum laude, from Florida A&M University. She also worked as an attorney and development consultant in residential real estate development in Washington, D.C., including owning a real estate development company. Prior to her career in real estate, she practiced for a number of years in the Financial Services group at Morrison & Foerster in Washington, D.C. providing legal counsel on consumer credit issues to large banks and credit card issuers. Prior to her legal career, she worked as a financial analyst in the Commercial Banking group at Bank of America in Atlanta, GA and in summer positions at a Wall Street investment bank and multiple commercial banks.Her work has appeared in the Michigan Journal of Race and Law, the Indiana Law Review, the UMKC Law Review, and the Washington University Journal of Law and Policy. She authored the textbook, Business Fundamentals for Law Students, which introduces law students to foundational concepts in business. Her media appearances include CBS News Chicago, Fox News Chicago, and ABC News Chicago. Since joining DePaul, she has served in several leadership capacities including as Associate Dean for Experiential Learning, Chair of the University Faculty Council Budget Committee, member of the University Faculty Council Executive Committee, and as Chair of the law school Curriculum Committee. Julie Lawton is serving as the current Interim Dean of DePaul Law. 

Education: Bachelor's Degree, Florida A&M University; JD, Howard University; LLM, Georgetown

Email: jlawton1@depaul.edu

Nichole Lopez-Tackett is a partner in Ropes & Gray’s finance group, based in Chicago. Her practice focuses on the representation of corporate borrowers, private equity sponsors, investment funds and lending institutions with respect to complex financing transactions, including syndicated/non-syndicated, secured/unsecured, multi-jurisdictional and leveraged buyout financing transactions, as well as, liability management transactions, recapitalizations, restructurings and other special situation transactions.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Loyola University Chicago; JD, DePaul University College of Law

Email: Nichole.Lopez-Tackett@ropesgray.com

Prior to joining the College of Law, Professor Jody Marcucci served as a law clerk to Illinois Appellate Court justices David A. Erickson and Rodolfo Garcia, where she drafted judicial decisions encompassing several areas of criminal and civil law including post-conviction, medical malpractice and contract cases. She also taught at DePaul as an adjunct legal writing instructor. Professor Marcucci received her BA in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and earned her JD, magna cum laude, from DePaul, where she served as an associate editor of DePaul Law Review and as a legal writing teaching assistant. Professor Marcucci also served as a law clerk at the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago and the Chicago Legal Clinic.

Education: Bachelor's Degree, University Wisconsin-Madison; JD DePaul University 

Email: jmarcucc@depaul.edu

Gregory Mark joined the College of Law in July 2011, serving as dean until July 2014. A noted legal historian, he has extensive experience in academia, administration and the professional world. From 1996 until joining DePaul, he was a vice dean, professor of law, center director and Justice Nathan L. Jacobs Scholar at Rutgers University School of Law in Newark, New Jersey, where he taught Business Associations, Contracts, Corporate Finance, Corporate Governance and Legal History. He was an assistant professor at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law from 1992 to 1996 and a visiting faculty member at Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1994. Professor Mark also was a member of the graduate faculty in history at Rutgers and a teaching fellow in the history department at Harvard University.

Prior to his academic career, Professor Mark served as associate counsel for the office of Independent Counsel in the Iran-Contra affair. In that role, he helped develop a case against Duane Clarridge, a former high-ranking official of the CIA, who later received a presidential pardon. He also led a project on foreign intelligence and national security concerns in the prosecution of government officials and acted as liaison to the White House Counsel’s office, the U.S. Senate, the National Security Agency and the CIA.

Professor Mark’s scholarship focuses on the areas of corporate finance, corporate governance and American legal history.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Butler University; JD, University of Chicago; Master’s Degree, Harvard University

Email: gmark@depaul.edu

Amanda Noascono returned to the College of Law as Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions in 2017, bringing with her over a decade of higher education admissions and recruitment experience. Amanda began her career in higher education at DePaul University College of Law after graduating in 2006 and has been the director of admissions at Northern Illinois University College of Law, North Park University and Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. She has been a member of the Law School Admission Council Finance and Legal Affairs Committee, Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors, Illinois Association of College Admission Counseling, Illinois Medical School Admissions Consortium, and the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association. Amanda has presented at university campuses and prospective law student forums across the country and has taught pre-law students in college. Amanda has a particular interest in diversity and inclusion in legal education.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; JD, DePaul University

Email: ANOASCON@depaul.edu

Bruce L. Ottley is a professor of law at DePaul University, where he has taught since 1978. He also directs the DePaul University/University College Dublin Cooperative Program, and serves as a co-director of the International Aviation Law Institute. Professor Ottley served as associate dean of the College of Law for nine years, acting dean in 2006 and interim dean during the 2014-2015 academic year.

Professor Ottley’s areas of teaching include torts, civil procedure, remedies and products liability. He is the co-author of Illinois Tort Law (4th ed., LexisNexis 2011), Product Liability Law in Illinois (4th ed., Law Bulletin Publishing 2009), Understanding Products Liability Law (2d ed., LexisNexis 2013), and Arson Law and Prosecution (Carolina Academic Press 2009). He also worked with the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts for 20 years conducting seminars on tort law for Illinois judges.

Prior to joining DePaul, Professor Ottley was a member of the University Of Papua New Guinea Faculty Of Law from 1972 to 1977. While in Papua New Guinea, he also practiced law and was a judge of the National Capitol District Court from 1976 to 1977.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, University of Missouri-Kansas City; JD and Master’s Degree, University of Iowa; LLM, Columbia University

Email: BOTTLEY@depaul.edu

Xareni is entering her third year of law school at DePaul. She is a member of DePaul University’s BA/JD 3+3 program. She received her undergraduate degree in Communication and Media with a minor in French. She also holds a certificate in Global Fluency. She is a First-Generation College graduate and Law Student. She is passionate about Intellectual Property Law and has experience working in immigration law. She enjoys being involved in her school community and creating a welcoming environment for incoming law students. She is the current President and former Secretary of the Latino Law Student Association and cares deeply about creating a path for Latinos in law.  She looks forward to meeting the students participating in the FGLP program and hopes to serves as a resource for them. 

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, DePaul University; 3L, DePaul University College of Law

Email: xpalacio@depaul.edu

Prior to teaching, Martha Pagliari was a partner at Cassiday Schade & Gloor practicing in the areas of medical malpractice, products liability, property damage, construction accidents, toxic torts and general negligence. She represented management in employment law cases before the federal courts, the EEOC, State of Illinois Department of Human Rights, Cook County Commission on Human Rights and the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations. She is licensed to practice law in Illinois and is a member of the Federal Trial Bar. At DePaul, she teaches Legal Analysis, Research & Communication.

Education: Bachelor's Degree, University of Notre Dame; JD DePaul University 

Email: mpagliar@depaul.edu

Nicholas E. Rodriguez describes himself as a first-generation everything (it feels like that to him!). He was born in Medellin, Colombia and immigrated to New York at a very young age. Nicholas’s parents barely spoke English and were blue collar workers. Yet, his parents believed in the importance of an education, having faith, working diligently, making sacrifices, and helping others. Those were the qualities that helped Nicholas (and his two sisters) succeed personally and professionally. The moral of his story is that if he can do it, so can you!!! Please do not give up!

The following is additional color on Nicholas’s professional and educational background.

Nicholas is a partner in Winston & Strawn’s Miami office. His experience includes representing strategic and private equity investors on complex and sophisticated business acquisitions and divestitures, strategic investments, corporate restructurings and recapitalizations, asset acquisition and sale transactions, joint ventures and other strategic partnering arrangements. He also has extensive experience in a wide array of industries, including technology, software, energy, infrastructure, financial services, media, agriculture, and telecommunications.

Nicholas has represented companies such as Advent International; Atlas Holdings; Brookfield Asset Management; Citigroup Global Markets; Enjoy, S.A.; General Electric; GIC Special Investments (Government of Singapore Investment Corporation); Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A.; Mapei International; Mastercard International; Millicom International Cellular SA; NII Holdings; Ospraie Management; and Verint Systems. He advised Advent International in its acquisition of the largest airport operator group in the Dominican Republic, which was recognized by the International Financial Law Review as the 2008 Private Equity Deal of the Year for the Americas. Nicholas also advised NII Holdings, Inc. in its US$178 million sale of Nextel Argentina to Grupo Clarin, which LatinFinance named as its 2015 Domestic M&A Deal of the Year.

Chambers notes that Nicholas is “is very diligent and responsive” (2021). Nicholas is also the sole recipient of Lexology's 2019 Client Choice Award (M&A) (Florida), which recognizes law firm partners who provide exceptional client care and provide significant value to clients' businesses above and beyond others in the market.

Nicholas also clerked for two U.S. federal district court judges (one in California and the other in Houston).

Nicholas was appointed to serve on the U.S.-Colombia Business Council’s Board of Directors.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, New York University; JD, St. John’s University School of Law; Master’s Degree, Colombia University School of Business

Email: NERodriguez@winston.com

Aarón Siebert-Llera, Esq., has been committed to social justice work for over 20 years, a commitment that began in earnest while he was an undergraduate student at San Francisco State University working towards his BA in raza studies (Latino studies). After graduation he worked as an Americorps fellow at an after-school program in San Francisco's Excelsior District. He moved to Chicago in 2003 for graduate school and completed his Master of Arts in interdisciplinary studies at DePaul University in 2005. He eventually went to Loyola University Chicago's School of Law and graduated in 2009. With a focus on civil rights, his legal career has included work at the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois as an immigrants' rights attorney, legislative and litigation roles at the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, community lawyering with the Inner-city Muslim Action Network, and as a high school law teacher in the Chicago Public Schools. Community centered work remained a core part of his career as he served in the role of director of inclusion at The Morton Arboretum from 2021 – 2023. As an Assistant Director in the Office of Professional & Career Development, he thoroughly enjoys sharing his experience and working directly with students in the College of Law.

Education: Bachelor's Degree, San Francisco State University; Master's Degree, DePaul University; JD Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Email: asiebert@depaul.edu

Prior to joining DePaul, Anthony G. Volini was an associate at a Chicago intellectual property firm, where he primarily handled patent prosecution and infringement analyses in a variety of technology areas, including extrusion and other mechanical devices, plastics, household products, surgical navigation equipment and insecticides.  Volini is a member of DePaul’s Center for Intellectual Property Law & Information Technology (CIPLIT®).  He is an inventor on U.S. Patent 7,308,992, assigned to S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., concerning aerosol actuating technology.

Since completing his M.S. in Cybersecurity, Volini has focused his scholarship and teaching on the intersection of technology and the law, and he regularly contributes to interdisciplinary initiatives between the law school and other DePaul colleges.

Education: Bachelor's Degree, Benedictine University; Master's Degree, DePaul University; JD, Loyola University Chicago

Email: avolini@depaul.edu

Alexander von Ribbeck is a second-year law student at DePaul University College of Law and a full-time financial analyst at Goldman Sachs in the wealth management division.

Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Alex graduated from Lake Forest College earning a Bachelor's degree in Finance with Magna Cum Laude honors.

Education: Bachelor’s Degree, Lake Forest College; Second Year Law Student, DePaul University College of Law

Email: alexandervonribbeck@gmail.com

Education: Bachelor's Degree, Marquette University

Email: donovanjwalsh@gmail.com