DARREN N. BROWN Board Member Secretary
Darren Brown comes to Organizing Youth, Impacting Neighborhoods with a wealth of experience from several different industries including the Federal Government. Mr. Brown worked as a Congressional Aide under Congressman Stratton. He has owned several businesses including a public relations and promotion agency. Prior to moving from New York to Florida with his wife and three girls six years ago, he worked on Wall Street with JPMorgan Chase. He has specialized in both institutional and private retirement planning, estate planning, wealth protection and growth for 15 years.
Mr. Brown received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Communications from Cornell University in 1994 and has his professional NASD Securities License and 215 Insurance for Florida and New York. He currently works as a board licensed medical professional while pursuing a career as a nurse anesthetist.
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LASONIA Y. SIMMONS Board Member
In 2008, Founder and Executive Director Boddie-Willis informed Ms. Simmons of a great opportunity to create a new nonprofit for youth. Ms. Simmons saw that Organizing Youth, Impacting Neighborhoods would be offering much needed services to the community. This is the reason Ms. Simmons became a founding board member.
Ms. Simmons is a married mother of 5. She believes she has been placed on earth to offer comfort and encourage healing to those who struggle or are in pain during life's journey.
Ms. Simmons is an alumna of Cornell University. She currently works for Monroe County Department of Human Services as a CPS Caseworker. She has training in trauma response, rape crisis and domestic violence advocacy. She completed training in family development credentialing Spring 2009.
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STANDISH E. WILLIS
Mr. Willis is an attorney in the City of Chicago specializing in personal injury, criminal defense and federal civil rights cases. Most of his civil rights practice involves suits against police for acts of violence and civil abuse. He chairs of the Chicago Chapter of the National Conference of Black Lawyers.
His legal experience includes over twenty-five years in private practice concentrating personal injury, state and federal criminal defense and federal civil rights litigation. During the course of his legal practice, he has tried over 75 federal jury trials and several state jury and bench trials. Stan has also argued before Illinois Court of Appeals, and many cases before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Moreover, he has litigated hundreds of civil rights lawsuits against many municipalities involving dozens of public officials. In 2002, Stan was named one of the "30 Tough Lawyers"by The Chicago Magazine.
Attorney Willis has been a faculty-lecturer for the annual civil rights seminar sponsored by the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE), The Chicago Kent College of Law, and the American Bar Association in the area of Section 1983 Civil Rights Liability and Litigation. He is a member of the National Conference of Black Lawyers, The Cook County Bar Association, The Chicago Bar Association, and The Illinois Bar Association. Attorney Willis is a graduate of The University of Chicago (B.A. and M.A. Degrees), The Illinois Institute of Technology- Chicago Kent College of Law (J.D. Degree), and he studied graduate economics at The University of Illinois-Chicago.
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AKIZA S. BODDIE-WILLIS Board Member Founder and Executive Director
** Please refer to Mentor Program Staff page for biography.
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