FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact Contact: Carisa Cunningham (617) 436-1350

January 26, 2012

GLAD Announces New Board Officers

Dianne Phillips to be Board President

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) will begin the New Year with several changes to its Board of Directors. Dianne R. Phillips will serve as the new board President, Sandy Anderson will be Vice President, Rick Yurko will be Treasurer, and Chuck Latovich will be Clerk.

All are board veterans who have helped to grow GLAD’s community networks and secure funding for the organization’s groundbreaking legal work.  President Dianne Phillips has served on the GLAD board for six years, has previously served as the board’s Vice President, and is partner in the Boston office of Holland & Knight LLP. She co-chairs the firm’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual & Transgender Affinity Group, whose mission is to develop and promote GLBT lawyers and professionals.  She is also co-chair of the Boston office Diversity Committee, a member of the firm-wide Diversity Council, and a recipient of the 2011 Top Women in Law award for her diversity efforts.  She brings with her 20-plus years of expertise.

“This is an exciting time to be a part of GLAD,” says Phillips. “Our Transgender Rights Project and youth outreach initiatives are hard at work educating and empowering our communities, and our two DOMA cases are at the forefront of the fight for marriage equality. Momentum is on our side.”

GLAD Executive Director Lee Swislow expects GLAD to grow under Dianne’s leadership. “GLAD’s Board has historically had strong leadership, and this slate of officers continues in that tradition, helping GLAD maintain our leadership role in achieving equality for all members of the LGBT community and those living with HIV/AIDS,” says Swislow.

Vice President Sandy Anderson is the founder of Sandy Anderson & Associates, which provides mediation, consulting and coaching services to individuals and organizations. Her career has centered on helping clients, employees and organizations identify and achieve goals, especially during times of great change. Her previous roles have included Vice President of Professional Services at IDX Systems Corporation, an innovative provider of health care IT solutions, and General Manager, Commercial Marketing for the Americas at GE Healthcare.

Treasurer Richard J. Yurko is the founder and former Managing Shareholder of Yurko, Salvesen & Remz, P.C, a business litigation boutique based in Boston. He is a summa cum laude graduate of Dartmouth College, and he received his J.D. with honors from Harvard Law School, where he served as the Senior Projects Editor for the Harvard Civil Rights - Civil Liberties Law Review. Rich and his husband of seven years, Rob Leary, live in Ogunquit, Maine, where they own The Morning Dove B&B and Katie’s Restaurant on Shore Road. Rich and Rob have three grown sons.

Clerk Chuck Latovich has managed and implemented diversity communication strategies, designed and conducted corporate training in diversity issues, and consulted on diversity strategies and goals. He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in education from Boston University.