Martha Pardo joined ACS in October 2022 as Director of Strategic Engagement.
Prior to joining ACS, Martha worked at Community Legal Services of Mid Florida as Senior Manager of Pro Bono Development where she worked on expanding and strengthening pro bono partnerships. Before CLS, Martha worked at LatinoJustice PRLDEF leading its efforts to help protect Latinx civil rights throughout the Southeast Region of the US. Most of Martha’s career has been dedicated to serving vulnerable communities. She worked in legal aid organizations in North and South Florida advocating for tenants’ rights, among other areas.
Martha received her J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law and her B.A. in Psychology from Florida International University. She is a member of the Florida Bar’s Public Interest Law Section’s Executive Council. She is based in Central Florida.
Veronica Hayes (she/her) joined ACS in August 2022 and serves as the Strategic Engagement Associate. In this capacity, she works with the Strategic Engagement Department to support ACS’s work around judicial nominations, the jobs and clerkship program, and the Next Generation Leaders program.
Prior to joining ACS, Veronica worked as an AmeriCorps Development VISTA. Before that, she served as an intern with the Minnesota Governor’s Office, where she worked closely with the Judicial, Board, and Commission Appointments division to recruit, screen, and advance hundreds of state-level appointments.
Veronica earned a B.A. in English Literature and Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In 2022, she was selected for a Fulbright grant (ultimately declined award).
Thea Cohen joined ACS in September 2021 and currently serves as the Director of Strategic Engagement. Her portfolio includes the jobs, clerkships, and internships pipeline as well as working with the Next Generation Leaders.
Before she joined ACS, Cohen served as part of the Voter Protection Team for the Democratic Party of Georgia in the 2020 presidential election and 2021 Senate runoff. Prior to that, she served as Counsel for the Making Every Vote Count Foundation, an organization dedicated to exploring alternatives to the current presidential selection system. Cohen also was a law clerk for a judge in the District Court for the District of Columbia and a judge on the Court of Federal Claims. She was also previously an associate at the D.C. office of Kirkland & Ellis, LLP.
Cohen received her J.D. from Georgetown University and her B.A. from Brown University in Religious Studies.
Tom Wright joined ACS in September 2018 and currently serves as the Associate Director of Strategic Engagement. He helps manage ACS's work concerning judicial nominations, strengthening the ACS legal professional pipeline, and ACS’s Path to the Bench Initiative.
Wright was previously the law fellow at ACS. Prior to joining ACS, Wright served as a staff attorney at the National Veterans Legal Services Program in Washington, D.C.
Wright received his J.D. from the University of Missouri School of Law in 2017, and his B.A. in communication and political science from the University of Missouri in 2014. During his time at Mizzou, he served as the president of the ACS student chapter and note and comment editor of the Missouri Law Review.
In his free time, Wright likes cheering for the Missouri Tigers, watching TV and movies, and visiting craft breweries.
Zachary Gima joined ACS in February 2012 and currently serves as Vice President of Strategic Engagement. He helps members leverage the ACS network into career development by managing ACS’s Next Generation Leaders program, working with student and lawyer chapter leaders to obtain judicial clerkships, and organizing policy calls for ACS members to stay informed of developments in the legal landscape.
Before joining ACS, Gima was a legal fellow for U.S. Senator Chris Coons, of Delaware. He previously held positions at the Delaware Democratic Party, the American Association for Justice, and Public Citizen. He is the immediate past-chair of the Temple Law Alumni Association, D.C. Chapter.
Gima received his J.D. from Temple University Beasley School of Law, and his B.A. in political science and in psychology from Tulane University.
