Our Staff
DenverOffice
Chris Henderson
Chris Henderson
Mr. Henderson has dedicated his legal career to children’s issues. His legal practice has focused on representing children’s best interests in dependency and neglect and delinquency proceedings. In 2016, he founded and was the managing partner of Child Advocates of Colorado. Mr. Henderson has provided strategic leadership and directed operations for a team of attorneys, social workers and support staff to provide quality multidisciplinary representation for hundreds of children involved in the court system. Prior to relocating to Colorado, Mr. Henderson was a staff attorney with the Children’s Law Center of Los Angeles where he represented numerous children and served as lead attorney for the first dependency drug court in Los Angeles County. Before attending law school, Mr. Henderson was a therapist for children and adolescents, providing therapy for in-patient children and adolescent psychiatric patients. In July 2018, Mr. Henderson was selected by the Board of Directors to be the new Executive Director.
Mr. Henderson attended Colorado State University, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in 1994. He obtained a Masters of Arts Degree from the University of Denver in 1998. He received his Juris Doctor Degree from Whittier Law School in 2004 graduating summa cum laude.
Sheri Danz
Sheri Danz
Sheri Danz is proud to be a part of the Office of the Child’s Representative’s amazing team. As Deputy Director, she supports all efforts to fulfill the agency’s mission and mandates and has had the opportunity to serve on numerous statewide committees, publish resources (such as Colorado’s Guided Reference in Dependency), and work with incredible children’s attorneys throughout the state.
Sheri’s legal advocacy on behalf of children and youth includes representing young people in child welfare and other civil matters as a Skadden Fellow/staff attorney at the Legal Aid Chicago; representing children in delinquency proceedings at the Colorado State Public Defender’s Office; and advocating for youth in public benefits, child welfare, and other civil proceedings at the Door’s Legal Services Program, a multidisciplinary youth services center in New York City. Sheri has also worked on issues regarding parents’ counsel at the Office of the State Court Administrator in Colorado. Prior to law school, Sheri taught special education in rural North Carolina through the Teach for America Program.
Sheri is a graduate of New York University School of Law, where she received a Root-Tilden-Kern public interest scholarship and served as a member of the New York University Law Review. After graduating from law school, she clerked for the Honorable Gene Carter, United States District Court Judge for the District of Maine.
Danielle Bird
Danielle Bird
Danielle Bird is responsible for supporting all aspects of the training under Michelle Jenson for the OCR. Danielle comes to OCR with several years of administrative and event coordination experience in public education. She is a California transplant residing in Colorado since 2008.
Stacie Cain
Stacie Cain
Stacie Cain is responsible for administrative, clerical, and executive support for the OCR. Stacie comes to OCR with several years of juvenile court experience. She is a Colorado native who enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She is also currently in school for court reporting.
Kimberly Casserino
Kimberly Casserino
Kimberly attended Colorado State University receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in 2010. She interned with the non-profit adolescent treatment Center, Turning Point Center for Youth and Family Development in Fort Collins. After her internship, Kimberly accepted a position with Turning Point and worked in the residential treatment center for several years. She then transitioned to the Business and Administration Office within Turning Point and worked as an Accounting Assistant for four years. In 2019 she accepted a position as Accounting Technician with the Department of Corrections Parole Office. Kimberly was promoted to Business Manager of the DOC Denver Complex and then transferred back over to Parole as the Business Manager. She is excited to join OCR’s amazing team as of August 2023.
In her free time, she enjoys walks with her dog, yoga and reading.
Ashley Chase
Ashley Chase
Ashley began her career in child welfare law while attending the University of Colorado School of Law with her participation in the Juvenile Law Clinic where she was awarded the CU Law pro bono service award (2006/07) and the Juvenile Law Clinic Award (2007). After completing an externship with the Honorable J. Robert Lowenbach in the 19th Judicial District, Ashley began working in Weld County in the areas of family law and as a Guardian ad Litem. During her 10 years in Weld County, Ashley participated in all aspects of litigation and appeals. She worked in the problem-solving court (Family Treatment Court) and was a member of the 19th Judicial District Best Practices Team. In 2010 she was awarded the Jim Covino Advocate of the Year award from the Office of the Child’s Representative and in 2017 she was a member of the Best Practices Team of the Year. Ashley has presented and taught across the state in the field of Child Welfare Law and continues to follow her passion as the Staff Attorney and Legislative Liaison at OCR.
Ashley received her B.A. degree from the University of Northern Colorado in the field of Advertising Media and Public Relations in 2000. She worked in Major League Soccer for four years prior to attending the University of Colorado School of Law and receiving her Juris Doctorate in 2007.
Gina Circo
Gina Circo
Gina began her career as a data manager for two large research studies targeting children’s mental and physical health, where she created and maintained databases, managed data collection staff, and assisted with data analysis and publication. She then pursued her graduate degree and worked as a School Psychologist in the Denver Metro Area for several years, serving students of all ages and backgrounds. She eventually found herself wanting to get back to her data analysis roots and took a position with the Safe2Tell program within the Colorado Department of Law, where she analyzed and reported out on tip data received by the program.
Gina ensures efficiency in the OCR’s programs and operations by assisting with the collection, validation, and analysis of data and communicating results to the OCR team and contractors. Gina is originally from New York and graduated cum laude from Binghamton University with a degree in Psychology. She completed her training in School Psychology at the University of Delaware.
Rebecca Garrison
Rebecca Garrison
Rebecca began her career as a mediator at the University of Virginia and later became a restorative justice facilitator for a community corrections program supporting the juvenile court system in Charlottesville, Virginia. She served as a subject matter specialist and trainer/coach in motivational interviewing and effective communication, both techniques aimed at reducing recidivism by lowering client resistance, developing rapport, and building personal accountability. Non-profit work gave Rebecca the opportunity to write grants, develop materials for court-involved families, and engineer case management software after discovering a knack for coding. After Charlottesville, Rebecca and her husband moved to Stuttgart, Germany, where Rebecca shadowed a local probation officer and witnessed the power of restorative justice principles at work in the German juvenile court system.
Rebecca develops software solutions and coordinates the data and information systems team at the OCR. In 2017, she co-presented on Colorado’s efforts to evaluate new models of child representation at the ABA National Conference. Rebecca is originally from Blacksburg, Virginia and graduated with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia.
Katie Hecker
Katie Hecker
Katie has dedicated her legal career to providing compassionate, competent, and proactive legal representation of the best interests of children, and the expressed interests of the accused. From 2011 to 2017, Katie was an attorney at the Brighton regional office of the Colorado State Public Defender, proudly serving as defense counsel for children accused of crimes in both delinquency and direct file cases. In 2018, after a year at the State Court Administrator’s Office providing support and education to Colorado’s problem solving court teams, Katie became a Guardian ad Litem. As a GAL, Katie specialized in delinquency and direct file proceedings. In September 2022, Katie started as OCR’s first Youth Justice Attorney and will focus her work on creating a more compassionate and equitable system of justice for youth and their families.
Katie received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Michigan in 2004 (Go Blue!), and her Juris Doctorate from Northeastern University in 2011. At Northeastern, she interned for public defender agencies in Alaska and Seattle, for the Honorable Judge Norman Stahl in the First District Federal Court of Appeals in Boston, and trained first-year law students in the application of their skills to real-world social justice movements. In her free time, Katie enjoys camping, riding bikes on dirt, spending time with her family and pets, and playing the ukulele (poorly).
Ginger Hella
Ginger Hella
Ginger is the Billing and Accounting Specialist for OCR. She comes to OCR with over 28 years of government benefits, budget, and payroll experience. She was a Senior Budget Analyst for the Colorado Judicial Department for 15 years, the Minnesota Judicial Branch for two years and the District of Columbia Superior Court for two years. She was a Benefits Specialist and Payroll Supervisor for the Colorado Judicial Department for 9 years combined. Ginger earned a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Moorhead State University and a master’s degree in Legal Administration from the University of Denver.
Katie Irwin
Katie Irwin
Katie Irwin is the primary accountant at OCR. She approves all of the payments and billing for the office, answers questions from attorneys related to billing matters, and assists the OCR staff with internal expenses and other accounting issues. She also works on internal audit and assists the CFO on special projects. Katie is a Colorado native and graduated with her masters in accounting from the University of Denver. She has only worked for the State of Colorado–at the State Auditor’s Office out of college, and then as the revenue accountant at Colorado Parks & Wildlife. She is very close to her family and enjoys spending time with them as well as horseback riding, swimming, and running. She also loves to read – especially the Wall Street Journal!
Michelle Jensen
Michelle Jensen
Michelle is a graduate of California Western School of Law, where she focused her legal education on child and family law. Michelle received her Master of Social Work degree from San Diego State University, with a concentration in program administration. She is passionate about, and committed to, providing support and resources to vulnerable populations and families in transition. For the past 10 years, Michelle has been working in adoption, child welfare, family violence, dispute resolution, high-conflict divorce, and co-parenting.
Brande Micheau
Brande Micheau
Brande Micheau currently serves as the Programs Specialist for OCR. Before joining the team, she worked with the Denver Elections Division developing election programs centered around voter outreach in education in disenfranchised communities. Brande also spent time working as a private investigator and with the Colorado State Public Defenders office where she worked on juvenile and family-specific cases. Brande is a graduate student from Colorado State University and earned a M.S in Management. In her free time, she enjoys travelling, volunteering with youth-serving organizations, and spending time with family and friends.
Nathifa Miller
Nathifa Miller, JD, CDP®
Nathifa Miller began her legal career more than twenty years ago. She specialized in working with families and children at risk of becoming involved in various “systems.” Nathifa provided expert legal advocacy and representation to specialized populations.
To meet the entire family’s needs, this work involved promoting, supporting, and applying a multidisciplinary approach.
Throughout Colorado, she was able to work with local communities and local and state government agencies.
In addition, Nathifa developed various programs such as the Prevention Partnership Program, where she served as director. In 2016, Nathifa accepted a position as the Collective Impact Coordinator for Families Forward Resource Center, in which she coordinated efforts to address Black infant mortality in the metropolitan area. In 2017, Nathifa transitioned to the Center for Public Health Practice, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado and was the Workforce Development Manager and Equity Specialist. She led the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Hub, where she provided advanced training and technical assistance to various organizations in supporting organizations’ efforts to advance their equity, diversity, and inclusion mission. Nathifa also provided her expertise to individuals engaged in policy advocacy with necessary to accomplish their objectives. In partnership with colleagues, Nathifa was instrumental in the development and implementation of the Search Advocate Training Program. She served as co-chaired the Inclusive Excellence Committee. In addition, she serves as an Adjunct Professor at the Colorado School of Public Health. Lastly, Nathifa continues in her court-appointed position as Vice-Chair the Continuing Legal and Judicial Education Committee, Colorado Office of Attorney Regulation.
Cara Nord
Cara Nord
Cara’s interest in children’s issues began over
20 years ago when she wrote and competed with an original oratory about child
abuse for her junior high forensics team. After earning her BA magna cum laude
in American Politics and Philosophy/Prelaw, Cara taught fourth grade in
Washington, D.C. through Teach for America. Her teaching experiences afforded her
the opportunity to attend law school on a full-tuition public interest
scholarship. During law school, Cara interned at a public defender’s office
where she represented children in At-Risk Youth and Child in Need of Services
proceedings, interned with TeamChild, completed Court Appointed Special
Advocate (CASA) training, and served as the CASA liaison to her law school.
After graduating law school summa cum laude, Cara clerked for the Washington
State Supreme Court and volunteered as a Big Sister. She then spent over 10
years litigating child welfare trials and appeals as an Assistant Attorney
General in Washington State and as an Assistant/Senior Assistant County
Attorney in Colorado. Cara joined the Office of the Child’s Representative
(OCR) in February 2017. As OCR’s Youth Empowerment Attorney, Cara champions
OCR’s Engaging and Empowering Youth Initiative, which aims to provide children
a voice through effective attorney services and advocacy, and to ensure that
youth voice and interests are paramount in the development of law, policy, and
practice.
Mark Teska
Mark Teska
Mark is a Colorado native with twenty years of public sector finance experience. He has ten years of experience with the State of Nevada, most recently serving as the Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Public Safety. He also has over nine years of local government finance experience with cities and school districts. Mark earned his Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from the University of Colorado, Denver.
Anna Ulrich
Anna Ulrich
Joining OCR in November 2021, Anna N. Ulrich is a staff attorney specializing in appellate and affirmative litigation strategies. Prior to joining OCR, Anna focused on representing the best interests of children in dependency and neglect cases as a Guardian ad litem on appeal, and she was also the County Court Judge for Saguache County, Colorado. Anna obtained her J.D. from University of Colorado School of Law in 2001. From 2001-2005, Anna practiced Native American law in Durango and Boulder, Colorado. In 2006, Anna began practicing child welfare law, first as a Child and Family Investigator and then as a Guardian ad Litem in the San Luis Valley of Colorado.
From 2012-2016, Anna also represented local departments of social services as a county attorney in dependency and neglect cases. She spends her free time hanging out with her teenage daughter and her rambunctious poodle, and they can usually be found in Colorado’s spectacular mountains and rivers.
Ben Ureles
Ben Ureles
Before joining the OCR team as a Performance Analyst, Ben worked in the world of digital marketing and communications for nonprofits, publishing houses, and higher education institutions. Ben is a graduate of The George Washington University, where he earned both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in English – focusing on 20th-century American Literature and eco-criticism.
Alex Wolff
Alex Wolff
Alex worked as a social worker and supervisor for 15 years in the Brooklyn office of the Legal Aid Society. The Legal Aid Society represents children in the most delinquency and D&N cases in New York City Family Courts. While at Legal Aid, he worked with clients aged zero to 21. The Brooklyn office is comprised of approximately 50 lawyers and 14 social workers who work with approximately 6,000 clients per year. Social workers have been an integral part of the Juvenile Rights Practice of Legal Aid for roughly 40 years. Alex firmly believes that Legal Aid’s clients required and benefited from interdisciplinary collaboration. He also believes such collaboration enhanced the practice of attorneys and social workers.
Working at Legal Aid was an incredible learning experience for Alex, and he realizes he has much to learn about Colorado’s systems and challenges. His goal is to help in any way he can to support contractors who are already practicing in an interdisciplinary way and to help connect and strategize with contractors interested in working with Case Consultants.
Colorado SpringsOffice
Nicole Lyells
Nicole Lyells
Nicole’s passion for legal advocacy on behalf of children and youth began during a law school internship with the presiding juvenile judge of the 4th Judicial District. It was in this setting she first began to comprehend the enormous power that the courts can have to influence the lives of young people, in ways both good and bad. Following law school, she started her career at the Colorado Springs Office of the Colorado State Public Defender where she spent most of her tenure handling juvenile delinquency matters. Upon leaving the public defender’s office, she started her own solo practice, where she handled both juvenile delinquency matters as defense counsel and dependency and neglect matters as GAL. She began as the managing attorney in the El Paso County Office of the Guardian ad Litem in March of 2022. She is extremely grateful to be in a role which combines her passions for child and youth legal advocacy and strengthening the community she has come to love as home during her legal career.
Nicole received her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter Minnesota in 2008 and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Denver in 2011.
