Our team
We are a group of attorneys, professionals, volunteers, and supporters who are passionate about advocating for relative caregivers who have stepped up to raise at-risk D.C. children in times of crisis.
Marla Spindel
Co-Founder and Executive Director
marla@dckincare.org
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Marla Spindel is the co-founder and Executive Director of DC KinCare Alliance, where she oversees all of the organization’s operations and spearheads its impact litigation and advocacy work. Prior to founding DC Kincare Alliance, Ms. Spindel co-founded the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project, now known as Volunteer Legal Advocates (“VLA”), where she managed its Child Advocacy Practice for ten years and then acted as Special Counsel, focusing on national and D.C. child welfare policy. She currently serves on VLA’s Advisory Board.
Ms. Spindel’s advocacy work at VLA led her to establish DC Kincare Alliance to support relatives who care for at-risk D.C. children by providing education, legal representation, and advocacy. She has practiced family law in D.C. for more than 15 years, which includes appointment to the D.C. Superior Court’s Counsel for Child Abuse and Neglect Attorney Panel, serving on the Court’s Domestic Relations Branch Subcommittee, and advocating for and assisting the Court with drafting the Practice Standards for Guardians Ad Litem in Custody and Related Consolidated Cases and the DC Superior Court’s Handbook for Self-Represented Litigants.
Ms. Spindel presented on kinship issues at the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law’s 2022 National Conference, as well as the Child Welfare League of America’s 2018 and 2019 Annual Conferences. She also has authored various articles and white papers, including “Kinship Diversion in the District of Columbia: A Review of Local Practice to Inform National Policy,” available at https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/grandfamilies/vol5/iss1/4/, and “THE CIVIL GIDEON: The Case for a Civil Right to Counsel.” In 2020, Ms. Spindel was chosen as one of 100 Child Welfare League of America Champions for Children. She earned a J.D., with honors, from George Washington University Law School and a B.A. in Government from Cornell University. Ms. Spindel was recognized by the Women’s Bar Association of D.C. as a Star of the Bar in 2009 and 2014.
Stephanie McClellan
Co-Founder and Deputy Director
stephanie@dckincare.org
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Stephanie McClellan is the co-founder and Deputy Director of DC KinCare Alliance. Prior to founding DC KinCare Alliance, Ms. McClellan volunteered with the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project representing at-risk children and domestic violence survivors. She currently practices family law in the District of Columbia. Ms. McClellan was previously a deputy district attorney in California and an assistant district attorney in Massachusetts. She brings over 15 years of trial and appellate experience to her advocacy for kinship families. Ms. McClellan earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School and a B.A. magna cum laude from Texas Christian University.
Tricia Long
Director, Policy and Advocacy
tricia@dckincare.org
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Tricia Long enjoyed a long career at the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Fiscal Service, where she served in many roles, most recently as Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Programs, Policy & Customer Relations, Debt Management Services. She served 16 years in the Office of Chief Counsel as Senior Counsel and Attorney Advisor, providing legal advice and litigation support in federal financial management matters. Prior to her public service, she practiced real estate and financing law. Tricia was also a staff attorney at the Resolution Trust Corporation, recovering taxpayer funds from failed savings and loans. Tricia is using her extensive experience in government and finance on behalf of the District’s kinship caregivers. Tricia earned her J.D. from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly University of California Hastings College of the Law) and her B.S. in Communication Studies from Northwestern University.
Jenny Brody
Managing Attorney, Special Projects
jenny@dckincare.org
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Jenny Brody is the co-founder of BrodyKling, PLLC, a DC family law firm, where she now serves as Senior Counsel. She has practiced family law in Washington, D.C. for more than ten years. As the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project (now Volunteer Legal Advocates), from 2008 to 2016, Ms. Brody provided legal assistance to hundreds of domestic violence survivors in Civil Protection Order cases, as well as in divorce, custody and child support matters. As a member of the D.C. Superior Court Counsel for Child Abuse and Neglect Panel, Ms. Brody represented children as a court-appointed Guardian ad litem and also represented adoptive parents in adoption petitions.
Ms. Brody has devoted substantial time to improving the court system, as a participant in the D.C. Superior Court Domestic Relations and Domestic Violence Implementation Committees. She played a role in promulgating Guardian ad litem Practice Standards, through the Council for Court Excellence and in D.C. Superior Court. Ms. Brody is a recognized expert in domestic violence and family law issues, presenting numerous training programs in these areas for lawyers, judges, social workers, medical professionals and domestic violence advocates. Prior to practicing family law, Ms. Brody worked in private practice, at Rogovin, Huge & Schiller and at Powers Law. She served as an attorney at the United States Department of Justice, Civil Appellate Staff. She clerked for the Hon. Irving L. Goldberg, of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Ms. Brody has a B.A. summa cum laude from University of Pennsylvania, and J.D. magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. Ms. Brody was recognized by the Women’s Bar Association of D.C. as a Star of the Bar in 2009 and 2014, and was honored as Washingtonian of the Year in 2015.
Mary Fuller
Paralegal and Client Intake Manager
mary@dckincare.org
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Mary Fuller, a relative caregiver herself, is excited to work with DC KinCare Alliance. Prior to working with DC KinCare, Mary spent 12 years as an office manager and technician in an ophthalmology office. She also has a degree in accounting. Mary is a proud member of the DC KinCare Alliance Relative Caregiver Community Board.
Olivia Baker
Social Services Manager
olivia@dckincare.org
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Olivia Baker is a lawyer and licensed social worker in D.C. After completing law school in 1988, she worked in the litigation department of a DC law firm before deciding to stay home full-time with her three children. From 2009 to 2017, Ms. Baker worked as a volunteer attorney with the DC Volunteer Lawyers Project (now Volunteer Legal Advocates) as a court-appointed guardian ad litem in D.C. Superior Court for at-risk children in custody cases. Through this work, Ms. Baker realized that many of the children and their families needed social and emotional, as well as legal, support. This led her to return to school to pursue a Masters in Social Work.
While pursuing her M.S.W., Ms. Baker worked with children and their families at a D.C. elementary school and at a community counseling center in Prince George’s County, MD. Since completing her M.S.W. in 2019, Ms. Baker has been serving as a volunteer Recovery Caseworker with the National Capital and Chesapeake Region of the American Red Cross, assisting families with obtaining social services after they have been forced from their homes by fire or other natural disasters. Ms. Baker is excited to help connect DC Kincare Alliance families with supports and services.
Raimy Reyes
Project Stay Manager
raimy@dckincare.org
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Raimy Reyes is a human rights lawyer with over 15 years of experience working in research, public policy, and advocacy of refugees and migrants’ rights.
She has worked with international organizations, civil society organizations, academia, and governments. Raimy is also a certified English-Spanish translator and interpreter.
Maryellen Ryan
Community Organizing Specialist
maryellen@dckincare.org
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Maryellen Ryan is a nonprofit and public-sector professional with more than a decade of experience advancing equity-centered programs, partnerships, and policy initiatives.
Her work spans philanthropy, government, higher education, and community organizations, with a focus on housing stability, family support, and survivor advocacy.
Most recently, Maryellen served as Deputy Director at a local foundation, where she managed grantmaking, strategic communications, and nonprofit partnerships. She brings a macro social-work lens to her work and has a strong track record of building trusted relationships, translating complex policy into accessible strategies, and centering the voices of people with lived experience.
She holds a master’s degree in social work from the University of Chicago and lives in Washington, DC.
Cristina Rios
Executive Assistant
cristina@dckincare.org
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Cristina is a dynamic project management professional with over 14 years of experience guiding multidisciplinary teams to successful outcomes across the life sciences and biotech industries.
Before joining DC KinCare Alliance, she served as a Scientific Program Analyst with the All of Us Research Program at the National Institutes of Health, supporting large-scale, mission-driven health initiatives.
Prior to her work at NIH, Cristina spent more than a decade at GeneDx, a leading genetic testing company focused on shortening the diagnostic journey for families. There, she held multiple leadership roles, most recently as a Product Launch Lead, overseeing complex projects across oncology and rare disease programs.
Cristina holds a Master of Science in Biotechnology from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemical Engineering from the Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila. Known for her positive attitude, strong organizational skills, and focused energy, Cristina brings a collaborative spirit and results-driven mindset to every organization she serves.