Darian M. Butcher
President

Joined March 2014
Darian Butcher (she/her/hers) is the founder of Butcher Law LLC, a boutique law firm that focuses on trust and estate litigation and guardianship and conservatorship matters. In addition to her active litigation practice, Butcher also serves as a professional fiduciary. Prior to founding Butcher Law LLC, Butcher practiced law at Day Pitney LLP. She earned her JD from Boston University School of Law and clerked for Massachusetts Appeals Court Justice R. Malcolm Graham (ret.). Butcher has previously served as Vice President (2018 to 2020) and Clerk (2016-2018) of the Board and co-chaired GLAD’s Spirit of Justice committee. Butcher also serves on the Massachusetts Chapter of the Federal Bar Association board, on the Complex Commercial Litigation Section Council of the Massachusetts Bar Association, and as co-chair of the Fiduciary Litigation Committee of the Boston Bar Association.

Shane Dunn
Vice President

Joined December 2014
Shane Dunn is Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations at Brandeis International Business School and has worked in a number of roles in both K-12 and higher education in Greater Boston. A native of Waterville, New York, he is a graduate of Cornell University and earned a master’s degree in higher education administration from Boston College. Active in several alumni, civic, and political activities, Dunn has served on the City of Boston’s SPARK Boston Council, was a Fellow with Education Pioneers, and currently serves as founding co-chair of the Board of Trustees of South End nonprofit childcare center Ellis Memorial. He has served on the GLAD Spirit of Justice committee and has been a board member since 2014.

Marlene Seltzer
Treasurer

Joined May 2016
Marlene B. Seltzer recently retired after ten years as President and CEO of Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit focused on improving education and economic mobility for low-income communities and individuals. She consults and speaks on systemic education reform and innovative workforce development practices and policies to improve education systems and labor market outcomes. Prior to JFF, Marlene held several prominent positions in nonprofit management, government, and workforce development. She has served on numerous national and nonprofit boards over her career and currently serves on several boards aimed at improving economic and social mobility. Marlene holds an MA in labor economics from Northeastern University.

Joseph Metmowlee Garland
Clerk

Joined May 2016
Joseph Metmowlee Garland, MD (he/him/his) is the Medical Director of the Infectious Diseases and Immunology Center at The Miriam Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, and an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University. His focus is on clinical HIV care for low-income individuals. He is a Board Certified physician in Infectious Diseases and Internal Medicine and a practicing HIV Specialist of the American Academy of HIV Medicine. Prior positions include serving as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Infectious Diseases Division at the University of Pennsylvania and as a staff physician at a federally qualified health center, Philadelphia FIGHT. He holds a Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School.

Annika Bockius-Suwyn

Joined April 2021
Annika Bockius-Suwyn (she/her/hers) currently practices estate planning and probate administration with DangerLaw, LLC in Newton. She is a Co-Chair of the Mass. LGBTQ Bar Association, and serves as the Co-Chair of the Membership Committee. Annika joined the Mass. LGBTQ Bar Association’s Board of Directors in 2018. She was named a Mass. Super Lawyer and Rising Star in Estate Planning and Probate for 2019 and 2020.

Annika studied law at Boston University, focusing on diverse areas of family law, including assisted reproductive technology (ART), mediation, and the evolving rights of LGBTQ+ families. While in law school, she worked as a Rule 3:03 Student Attorney at BU’s Civil Litigation Clinic and was a founding member of the BU Family Law Association. Before joining DangerLaw, LLC, in June 2016, Annika served two terms as a Law Clerk to the Justices of the Massachusetts Probate and Family Court (in Worcester, Middlesex, Plymouth, and Suffolk counties), where she researched complex legal issues and drafted judgments and findings in some of the busiest counties in the Commonwealth.

Annika joins GLAD’s Board after serving as a host committee member of the Spirit of Justice Awards Celebration in 2018 and host committee co-chair in 2019 and 2020. She also has co-hosted the “Get Your Queer Ducks in a Row” event for GLAD Forward, drawing on her estate planning expertise to share with the community. Annika cares deeply about giving back to the community and is thrilled to channel that passion into GLAD and the LGBTQ+ community.

Jean-Phillip Brignol

Joined August 2020
Jean-Phillip Brignol (he/him/his) works as Assistant Counsel at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, where he assists the legal team and advises the business teams on a variety of legal, contractual, and operations matters. The son of Haitian immigrants, Jean-Phillip is originally from the south suburbs of Chicago. Jean-Phillip earned his BA in Political Science at Yale University, his Ed.M. at Boston University School of Education, and his JD from Boston University School of Law. After law school, he clerked for the Honorable Chief Justice Chase T. Rogers (retired) at the Connecticut Supreme Court.

During his time as an Associate at the law firm Holland & Knight LLP, he focused his practice on general litigation and had an active pro bono practice, which included representing an LGBTQ asylum applicant through deportation proceedings in Boston Immigration Court and parents of English Language Learners in federal court. Jean-Phillip was selected to be in the Top 40 Under 40 Massachusetts list of the National Black Lawyers in 2019 and a Holland & Knight Pro Bono All Star from 2017-2019. He also serves on the Governing Board of EdVestors and the Board of Directors of the Commonwealth Corporation.

Jean-Phillip began his time with GLAD as a GLAD Answers volunteer during law school and now serves on the Spirit of Justice Dinner Host Committee. He continues to bring to the organization a career-spanning passion for the law and a commitment to civil rights, racial equity, and social and economic justice.

Mark Brimhall-Vargas, Ph.D

Joined January 2022
Mark Brimhall-Vargas, Ph.D. (he/him/él) is Fenway Health’s first Executive Vice President of Racial Equity and Social Justice. Mark has over 25 years of experience in change management, organizational development, and training and programming around systemic inequities. Prior to joining Fenway Health, Mark served as Chief Diversity Officer and Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Brandeis University.

Mark is a leading scholar and practitioner within the field of diversity, equity, and inclusion. As Brandeis University’s first-ever Chief Diversity Officer and Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, he led efforts to build an equity infrastructure across all areas of Brandeis University. These efforts included establishing an Office of Equal Opportunity, Office of DEI Programs, Training, Education, and Development, an Ombuds Office, and fully establishing the Gender and Sexuality Center.

Before working at Brandeis University, Mark was Chief Diversity Officer and Associate Provost at Tufts University. He is a contributing editor to Occupying the Academy: Just How Important Is Diversity Work in Higher Education? Mark has consulted as a mediator in conflict resolution for the US Institute of Peace in Medellin, Colombia; Yangon, Myanmar; and Ramallah, West Bank. Mark holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Education Policy and Leadership from the University of Maryland, where he worked from 1997 through 2015 in the university’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Edward Byrne

Joined May 2016
Edward F. Byrne is the Student Diversity Programs Coordinator in the Cambridge Public Schools, serving as an advisor to school and city leaders on equity and inclusion issues. He has held positions as Aide to the Mayor of Cambridge, MA for education and equity initiatives, Project Manager, Sametz Blackstone Associates, and Managing Director, Project 10 East. Edward served two terms as vice-chair of the MA Commission on GLBT Youth and serves on the New Leaders Council Boston Board of Directors and, previously, the Board of Visitors at Fenway Health. He holds a Master of Public Policy from Simmons College.

Ray Cheng

Joined May 2020
Ray Cheng is a Senior Manager at Deloitte Tax, LLP and assists clients with state and local tax matters. He earned his Bachelor’s in Business Administration, his Masters in Professional Accounting from The University of Texas at Austin, and is a Certified Public Accountant in Massachusetts and Texas. The son of immigrants from Hong Kong, Ray grew up in Texas and lives in Boston with his husband Jeff and their three children adopted through foster care. Ray is passionate about social and racial justice that directly and indirectly impacts the LGBTQ+ community. He has served on the boards of SMART Team and COLAGE and currently serves on the Executive Board of Deloitte’s LGBTQ+ employee resource group and as a Board Advisor of COLAGE.

Dallas M. Ducar MSN, RN, PMHNP-BC, CNL

Joined January 2022
Dallas Ducar (she/her/ella) is the Chief Executive Officer of Transhealth Northampton. In addition, Dallas is on faculty at Northeastern University, University of Virginia School of Medicine, University of Virginia School of Nursing, Columbia University, and the MGH Institute for Health Professions. She serves as the Vice-Chair of the Primary Care Alliance, is on the LGBTQI Federal Policy Roundtable, and is a member of the Board of Directors of Healing Our Community Collaborative. She has advised international research groups on best practices, carried out community-based participatory action research programs, and advocates for gender-affirming care nationally. Dallas seeks to revolutionize healthcare, building novel systems to provide holistic, empowering, gender-affirming care.

Jessyca Feliciano

Joined September 2019
Jessyca Feliciano is a Vice President of Employee Relations at State Street Corporation, helping manage the relationships between the organization and its employees. Prior to joining State Street, Jessyca held positions of increasing responsibility in corporate and nonprofit organizations, most recently with Mass Mutual as a Human Resources Business Partner supporting the Data Science and Digital Design corporate groups and their leaders. In addition to her primary responsibilities, Jessyca also served as a diversity and inclusion liaison, holding the business accountable for implementing diversity best practices and strategies. She started her career in social work working with at-risk youth in underprivileged communities, always focusing on creating opportunities of inclusion, which is still something very close to her heart. Jessyca earned a Master of Education with a focus on Organizational Development and Leadership from Cambridge College’s Graduate School of Education, and a Bachelor’s in Social Work from Roberts Wesleyan College.

Matthew McGuirk

Joined September 2019
Matthew McGuirk (he/him/his) serves as Director of Investments in the Private Client Division of Oppenheimer & Co. in Manhattan. He has worked in asset & wealth management for over 20 years, currently focusing his practice on serving the LGBTQ+ community. In his public service life, he serves on several boards & committees that support this community and is honored to begin work on the Development Committee of GLAD’s Board. Matt particularly looks forward to building bridges between organizations with which he has ties, such as the MA LGBT Chamber of Commerce where he is a founding partner, and other nonprofits such as Community Research Initiative where he is a member of the Board; Fenway Health where he is a member of the Board of Visitors; and the Human Rights Campaign, where he is a member of the New England Steering Committee and Co-Chair of the Federal Club for New England. While he is committed to all areas of GLAD’s work, he has a particular interest in protecting children and the elderly and has been involved with organizations such as the LGBT Community Center and SAGE. He is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College and holds an Executive Certificate in Financial Planning from Georgetown University and a Master of Science in Financial Planning from Bentley University.

Beth R. Myers

Joined January 2022
Beth (she/her/hers) is a partner in Burns & Levinson, LLP’s Business Litigation & Employment Group. Beth is respected in her field as a zealous advocate for employees and an experienced litigator. Beth represents individuals in every aspect of the employment relationship, with a particular concentration on litigation in state and federal court in cases involving discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation, as well as wage and hour laws, contract and common law. Beth highly values her role to affect real change in individual’s lives by advocating on their behalf in situations where they have been mistreated in the workplace due to their gender, age, sexual orientation, race, disability status, etc.

Before joining Burns & Levinson, Beth was a partner at the Boston law firm of Powers, Jodoin, Margolis & Mantell LLP. Beth also served as a law clerk for the Honorable Margaret R. Hinkle in the Massachusetts Superior Court, where she developed a passion for the courtroom. Beth received recognition in Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Plaintiff Employment Lawyers in 2020 and 2021.

As an open lesbian and mother, the causes that GLAD fights for align with Beth’s personal and professional values. She is honored to serve as a member of the board of an organization that does for New England and the country what she tries to accomplish on an individual level.

Mario Nimock

Joined August 2020
Mario Nimock (he/him/his) is a civil defense attorney at Coughlin Betke LLP in Boston, where he handles employment and other complex litigation matters. He earned his Bachelor’s in Finance from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and his JD from the University of Massachusetts School of Law at Dartmouth in 2013. At UMASS-Dartmouth, Mario received the Massachusetts’ Black Judges Conference Book Award, was the President of OUTLaw, and Student Representative to the MA LGBTQ Bar Association. After law school, he clerked for the Honorable Frederick Brown (retired) at the Massachusetts Court of Appeals. Mario previously served as Co-Chair of the Massachusetts LGBTQ Bar Association and has been active with GLAD for many years as both a member and former co-chair of the Spirit of Justice Committee.

Lee Swislow

Joined May 2018
Since Lee (she/her/hers) left her role as Executive Director of GLAD in 2014, she has been working as an interim CEO for nonprofits in transition, where she draws on her expertise in strategic planning, financial management, organizational development, and program development. Previously she served for five years as Vice President at JRI Health, providing a variety of services to people living with HIV/AIDS as well as LGBTQ+ youth. She is proud of the progress GLAD has made in securing rights for the LGBTQ+ community and people living with HIV/AIDS, and knows how much work is yet to be done.

Jacob Smith Yang

Joined April 2021
Jacob Smith Yang is the Director of Human Resources and Administration at Advancing Justice – Asian Law Caucus. Previously, he was the Senior Director of Capacity Building at the Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum (APIAHF). Jacob is a nonprofit administrator with more than twenty years of experience working on Asian American and Pacific Islander health equity and inclusion, LGBTQ+ rights, and HIV. Jacob is a certified professional coach.

For 10 years Jacob served as Executive Director of Massachusetts Asian & Pacific Islanders (MAP) for Health in Boston, Massachusetts. He served as a commissioner and chair of the Massachusetts Commission on GBLT Youth and a member and chair of the Boston EMA Ryan White HIV Services Planning Council. Jacob has also served on the boards of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Public Health Association. The Philanthropic Initiative named Jacob a 2007 Boston Neighborhood Fellow. His first job was as a reporter at Boston’s Gay Community News.

Jacob is excited to return to GLAD after previously serving as the organization’s AIDS Law Project paralegal in the early 1990s. He looks forward to building relationships within GLAD, translating his experiences and skills from previous and current roles, and sharing insights cultivated from leading nonprofits throughout his career.