City of Philadelphia: Commission Members

Associate Professor of Religion and Women's Studies at Temple University

Associate Professor of Religion and Women's Studies at Temple University

Rabbi Alpert was one of the first women rabbis in the history of Judaism, ordained by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1976. She is a published author and leading authority on American religion, focusing on issues related to Judaism, gender, sexuality, and race. Her current research is on religion and sports, and her most recent work is Out of Left Field: Jews and Black Baseball, published by Oxford University Press in 2011.

Regina Austin, Esq.

William A. Schnader Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law

William A. Schnader Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law

Professor Austin is an expert on economic discrimination and minority legal feminism, with an emphasis on overlapping race, gender, and class oppression. She is also director of the Penn Program on Documentaries & the Law, which most recently partnered with PCHR on the documentary, "Boxed Out: Criminal Records & the ’Ban the Box’ Movement in Philadelphia."

Alfredo Calderon

President & CEO of ASPIRA of Pennsylvania

President & CEO of ASPIRA of Pennsylvania

Mr. Calderon is the CEO of ASPIRA of Pennsylvania, a nonprofit community-based organization that focuses on Latino youth and their education. Established more than 40 years ago, ASPIRA of PA’s mission is to support and empower Latino students through advocacy and leadership development. Since 1998, ASPIRA of PA has opened six charter schools that are seen as models of success throughout the country.

Thomas H. Earle, Esq.

CEO of Liberty Resources, Inc.

CEO of Liberty Resources, Inc.

Mr. Earle is the CEO of Liberty Resources, Inc, a non-profit, consumer driven organization that advocates and promotes independent living for persons with disabilities. Mr. Earle has been involved in the legal rights of people with disabilities since 1991. He has worked previously with the Disabilities Law Project as a Staff Attorney representing people with disabilities in discrimination and other cases, and then as ADA Project Coordinator, coordinating the enforcement of disability rights under the Americans With Disabilities Act. He served as the Chairperson of the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Legal Services to Persons with Disabilities Committee from 1998-2001, as an Advisory Board Member of the Augmentative Communications Employment Training and Support Program, Institute on Disabilities at Temple University in 1999, and sat on the Board of Directors for Transition to Independent Living from 1984-1997, among other distinctions. In 2009 he was inducted into the Pennsylvania Statewide Independent Living Council’s Hall of Fame.

Marshall E. Freeman

Former Director of the Minority and Women Business Enterprise at the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority

Former Director of the Minority and Women Business Enterprise at the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority

Mr. Freeman has held many positions with the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority including Director of the Minority and Women Business Enterprise with contract compliance duties and responsibilities that included implementing the agency's anti-discrimination policy. He now runs his own consulting firm, Marshall Freeman Associates, Inc.

Saadiq Abdul-Jabbar Garner

Chief Executive, Quality Life Projects, Inc.

Chief Executive, Quality Life Projects, Inc.

Mr. Abdul-Jabbar is the Chief Executive of Quality Life Projects, Inc., and a life-long resident, and community organizer in Philadelphia. “Brother Saadiq,” as he is affectionately called by politicians, community organizers, business leaders and religious members, has provided exemplary and proven leadership to numerous community-based organizations. From 1996 to 2011, he provided leadership for the Germantown Masjid (Mosque). From 2009 -2011, he served as the Outreach Coordinator for the Greater Philadelphia Islamic Community, leading a group of concerned citizens to quell a potentially dangerous situation in several area schools. In 2011, he was named Honorary Chairman of Faith Community United for a Healthier Germantown Fair, at which he received both Congressional and Mayoral Awards.

Sarah E. Ricks

Clinical Professor & Co-Director of the Pro Bono Research Project

Clinical Professor & Co-Director of the Pro Bono Research Project, Rutgers School of Law-Camden and Visitor, University of Pennsylvania Law School (for 2012-13)

Professor Ricks is the author of Current Issues in Constitutional Litigation: A Context and Practice Casebook (Carolina Academic Press 2011), and of articles on civil rights, federal appellate courts, and teaching law. Ricks is a Board Member of the Women's Law Project, co-chair of the Section 1983 Subcommittee of the ABA Civil Rights Litigation Committee, and a member of the American Law Institute.

Beatriz (Bia) Vieira

Vice President, Philanthropic Services, The Philadelphia Foundation

Vice President, Philanthropic Services, The Philadelphia Foundation

Beatriz (Bia) Vieira is The Philadelphia Foundation’s first Vice President for Philanthropic Services. Ms. Vieira has primary responsibility for managing more than $20 million in grants awarded each year to hundreds of nonprofit organizations and for spearheading the Foundation’s comprehensive philanthropic services to individuals, families and businesses. Originally from Brazil, Ms. Vieira is a longtime activist in women’s, LGBT, Latino and arts and culture issues. An active leader in the field both locally and nationally, she currently serves on the boards of the Community College of Philadelphia, the Delaware Valley Grantmakers, the Homeless Advocacy Fund, The Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence and serves as advisor for the Philadelphia Bar Association Nonprofit Institute and the Community Justice land Trust. She has served on the boards of the National Clearinghouse for the Defense of Battered Women and The Cultural Fund and was the chair for the National Domestic Violence & Child Abuse Task Force for the Lutheran Community Foundation.