Jake Conley is an incoming student at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism as a fellow at the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism. He is a recent graduate of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, where he majored in journalism and sociology. Jake works as an investigative journalist covering the oil & gas industry with Public Herald. At JMU, he worked at The Breeze, JMU’s student paper, for his four years at the university. In 2020, he founded the investigations desk and served as The Breeze’s first investigations editor. In 2021, he worked as the editor-in-chief of The Breeze, where he led The Breeze's legal battle against JMU over FOIA denials and data obfuscation.

Alan Gernhardt is the executive director of the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council. He began working with the Council as a staff attorney in 2004, was promoted to senior attorney in 2008, and became executive director of the Council in 2017. He earned a B.S. degree from Indiana University and a J.D. from the University of Richmond, T.C. Williams School of Law. The Council issues formal and informal advisory opinions, publishes educational materials, provides training presentations, and serves as a legislative forum regarding access to public records and meetings under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.

Heidi Hertz brings over 15 years of experience in Virginia state government working across multiple agencies and most recently serving as the deputy secretary of Agriculture and Forestry in the Office of Governor Ralph S. Northam. Prior to joining Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, Heidi worked to advance policy and budget priorities supporting Virginia’s first and third largest industries: agriculture and forestry. Heidi provided strategic direction for rural economic development, farmland and forestland retention, and ensuring that all Virginians have access to safe, healthy foods. Heidi has served on a variety of nonprofit boards including Shalom Farms in Richmond and is active on the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Alumni Board. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and a Master of Science from James Madison University. She is a native of Lunenburg County and a resident of the city of Richmond, where she lives with her family.

My’chael D. Jefferson-Reese is the first Chief Public Defender for the County of Chesterfield. She has been a practicing attorney for nearly 19 years and has represented indigent defendants in the Commonwealth of Virginia for almost 13 years. My’chael is an experienced trial attorney who has handled a variety of criminal cases ranging from petit larcenies to murder. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Richmond School of Law. Prior to focusing her career on indigent criminal defense, My’chael was a civil litigation associate where she primarily litigated contract and employment disputes.

Natalie Miller Moore specializes in communications, publicity, social media content and marketing campaigns. She built her reputation as a knowledgeable and savvy marketer, bringing more than 25 years of experience in writing and journalism. She has a journalism degree from Bowling Green State University in Ohio and continues her education through leadership programs such as the Sorensen Institute for Political Leaders and LEAD Historic Triangle. Natalie currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Williamsburg Regional Library, the advisory board for ReflectUs to promote women in all levels of government, and the League of Women Voters Williamsburg

Laura Mollo is a citizen from Richlands, a small town in Southwest Virginia. She has utilized FOIA to stay informed of the public business of the town. Following a strong public showing of support from citizens, she has become a candidate in the local Town Council race to be held in November 2022. Laura believes transparency in government is of utmost importance and is excited to see citizens becoming more involved in their local governments.

Joy Ramsingh is an attorney whose national solo practice focuses on open government and appellate litigation. Prior to establishing her own practice, Joy worked at a large law firm in Philadelphia exclusively handling open records requests and appeals, as well as related newsgathering issues and government transparency cases. She previously served as appellate and amicus curiae counsel to a state government agency, the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records, where she also issued hundreds of binding legal opinions in open records appeals. At the Office of Open Records, she assisted with trainings, research, and the creation of a comprehensive case index, reviewing and compiling every significant open records case since the law's inception. While there, she represented the Office of Open Records as appellate counsel, successfully defending the constitutionality of the Right-to-Know Law. Before she was hired by the Office of Open Records, Joy worked at a boutique litigation firm in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and at a law firm in Nashville.

Michael Shafer is a territory manager for Exmark manufacturing, covering the state of Virginia for the past nine years with exponential growth. "My smile is my logo, my personality is my business card, how I leave others feeling after they have an experience with me is my trademark." Michael is not only a business person but he's also a victim, survivor, and volunteer for homicide victims. He thrives on helping others and leaving them with a chance of hope. He is an avid bowler and serves on several boards and committees across the southeast.

Jim Spencer is the editorial page editor of the Charlottesville Daily Progress. He started working there in January 2022. He has been a journalist for nearly 50 years. Before coming to the Daily Progress he spent more than a decade as a Washington correspondent for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He also worked as a columnist for the Denver Post and the Newport News Daily Press. He wrote feature stories for the Chicago Tribune and the Norfolk Virginian-Pilot. At the Pilot, he spent time as a Sunday magazine writer, city beat reporter and a sports writer. He began his career at the Virginia Gazette in Williamsburg. He is a native Virginian and a graduate of the College of William and Mary and Virginia Commonwealth University.

Robin Wallace serves as the Legal Manager and FOIA Officer for the City of Staunton. Robin conducts substantive legal work within parameters and under the guidance of the city attorney; legal and other research and litigation and transactional support management among various departments and senior staff management, including issues related to governance, management, human resources, contractual and real estate transactions, while also ensuring legal compliance. As the city’s FOIA Officer, Robin is responsible for receiving FOIA requests and helping to facilitate timely responses. Robin is a graduate of the University of Virginia and has 15 years of experience working in local government.

Lin Weeks is a staff attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and the co-director of the University of Virginia School of Law First Amendment Clinic. His work with RCFP includes litigating public records, court access and civil rights cases, authoring amicus briefs, vetting documentaries and investigative journalism, and advising on policy. Prior to joining the Reporters Committee, Lin was in private practice in New York where he focused on intellectual property litigation and media law.

Robert Zullo is editor in chief of the Virginia Mercury, a nonprofit online news outlet covering Virginia government and policy and part of the States Newsroom network of news sites. Before launching the Mercury, he spent 13 years as a newspaper reporter and editor in Virginia, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, as well as papers in New Jersey, Louisiana and Pennsylvania. In 2020, he won a leadership and innovation award from the Virginia Press Foundation.