Vanessa Ortizjoined the Innocence Project in 2023 as Assistant Director of Organizational Development, Vanessa provides high-level, customized facilitation services and assists individual Network members and the Network at large with the creation of strategies to grow their organizations to become stronger, impactful, and equitable. Previously, Vanessa worked with diverse international organizations including the International Rescue Committee, USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives, and International Center on Nonviolent Conflict, specializing in supporting U.S.-based and international civic organizations and groups to effectively communicate their mission, expand their outreach, maintain fiscal responsibility, and other critical standards that support the goals of human rights, nonviolence, and justice. Vanessa holds a Master of Arts in international affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the NY Institute of Technology.