Director of Supervision and Professional DevelopmentDirector of Supervision and Professional Development Jenna Collins (she/her) is the Director of Supervision and Professional Development at Community Legal Services and an attorney in the housing unit. She oversees and supports CLS’s supervision and training systems to ensure all staff have access to excellent supervision and training necessary to…
Paralegal Joan Belfus is a paralegal in CLS’ Housing Unit. She is part of the Philadelphia Eviction Prevention Program (PEPP) which is a program that focuses on providing representation to low-income tenants facing eviction. She is based at the Tenant Landlord Help Center located in Municipal Court. Prior to joining CLS, Joan interned at the…
Divisional Supervising Attorney Holly Beck is a Divisional Supervising Attorney in the housing unit at Community Legal Services, where she focuses on providing advice and representation to tenants facing eviction and other forms of housing instability. She also leads the housing unit’s work on the inequitable impacts of eviction records and tenant screening practices. Before joining…
Paralegal Lili Smack is a paralegal in the CLS Family Advocacy Unit (FAU). In the FAU, Lili assists parents who have children in DHS dependency cases. Previous to joining CLS in 2003, Lili worked as a Mental Health Tech at Misericordia Hospital, a Job Coach/Special Service Advisor at Educational Data Systems, and a Case Manager…
Divisional Supervising Attorney Elizabeth Larin (she/her) is a Divisional Supervising Attorney in the Family Advocacy Unit, which represents parents in all stages of dependency proceedings, including adjudication, permanency reviews, termination of parental rights trials and appeals. She joined CLS as a staff attorney in 2013. Prior to joining CLS, Elizabeth served for eight years as…
Technical Assistant Deborah Holden is the Technical Assistant in the CLS Family Advocacy Unit. Honors & Awards Equal Justice Award, Community Legal Services (2012)
Staff Attorney Alex Dutton is a Staff Attorney in the Family Advocacy Unit at Community Legal Services. Alex defends parents who are at risk of losing their children to foster care due to allegations of abuse or neglect. Before joining CLS, Alex was an Independence Foundation Public Interest Law Fellow and Staff Attorney at the…
Social Work Supervisor Ron Ayler is a Social Work Supervisor in the Family Advocacy Unit (FAU) at Community Legal Services (CLS), where he works with attorneys, paralegals, and peer parent advocates as part of legal team advocating for parents involved with the child welfare system. He supervises two FAU social workers as well as graduate…
Paralegal Sherlyn Martinez is a paralegal in the CLS Employment Unit.
Paralegal Jessa Boehner is a Paralegal in CLS’ Employment Unit. In her previous role as Special Project Coordinator, she managed the Clean Slate Screening Program (CSSP), which screened thousands of Pennsylvanians for eligibility for criminal record sealing under Pennsylvania’s new Clean Slate Law. As a paralegal, she helps clients access unemployment benefits, clear their criminal…
