Our Houston Team

Carolina was born in Lima, Peru and raised in McAllen, Texas. She received her Bachelor of Art degree in Political Science from Baylor University and her law degree from Creighton University School of Law. After graduation, she began her career in San Francisco, California representing adult clients in front of the San Francisco Immigration Court and USCIS office. She focused on removal defense representing clients in family petitions, U visas, asylum and withholding of removal, cancellation of removal, bond hearings, and other forms of immigration relief. In 2014, Carolina moved back to Texas to represent unaccompanied children in removal proceedings. Prior to joining KIND, she represented both detained and released unaccompanied children as a Staff Attorney at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. Carolina is licensed to practice law in Texas and Iowa and is fluent in Spanish.

Vanessa Alfaro is a native Texan practicing Immigration Law in the city of Houston. She earned her Juris Doctorate from Texas Tech University School of Law in May of 2015. During her time in law school, Vanessa interned with the Innocence Project of Texas while also volunteering with the Estate Law Society. Her volunteer work consisted of drafting wills for Veterans which lead her to receive recognition from the Pro Bono College of the State Bar of Texas in 2015. Vanessa began her legal career working for a boutique law firm dedicated to Immigration Law. It was there where she gained significant experience in deportation defense and family based immigration. In her free time, as a true Houstonian at heart, she enjoys cheering on the Dynamo and the Rockets.

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Leslie was born and raised in Houston, Texas to Salvadorean, immigrant parents. Her passion to explore Latin American politics, culture and migration began very early on. Prior to joining the KIND-Houston office, Leslie studied at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Government in May 2017. During her undergraduate career, she had the opportunity to study and conduct research in both Costa Rica and Chile, where she focused on cultural identity and social politics. She interned with the Catholic Charities St. Francis Cabrini Center in Houston in 2016, where she specifically worked with DACA applicants and recipients. After graduating from Hamilton in 2017, she moved back to Houston and briefly worked as a paralegal at a private law firm, where she gained experience in cases with unaccompanied minors applying for asylum and/or SIJS. Leslie joined the KIND-Houston office in February 2018, where she passionately continues to work with children seeking immigration relief.

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Martin is originally from Mexico and has reside in Texas since 1999. Prior to joining KIND, Martin worked with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston – Houston as an SRS Specialist assisting adult clients through the reunification process with minor’s under ORR care in the Houston area. Martin is also the proud owner of Gohan, a husky/lab mix therapy dog!

Rosalba is originally from Mexico City. She has been residing in Houston since 1999. She received her Bachelors in Science in Marketing from the University of Houston Clear Lake. Prior to joining KIND, Rosalba worked with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston – Houston conducting Know Your Rights presentations and intakes to detained and released unaccompanied children in the Houston area.

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Cristina is Peruvian-American and was raised in McAllen Texas, a town located on the US-Mexico border. She graduated from Baylor University with a bachelors degree in International Studies. She then pursed a master’s degree at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, where she focused primarily on security studies. She also studied development in Latin America, Latin American- U.S. relations, and immigration policies.

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Rossana grew up in a small town on the US-Mexico border where crossing an international border every day to go to school was normal. She graduated from Boston College with a bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Management with minors in International Studies and History. While an undergraduate, Rossana was an intern at Pavee Point Traveller and Roma Centre in Dublin working in several programs dedicated to achieving full human rights for Travellers and Roma in Ireland. After graduating, she moved to New York City to complete a master’s degree in International Affairs with concentrations in Security and Conflict and Governance and Rights. During her studies, Rossana was accepted to the International Field Program where she was given the opportunity to work in a nonprofit in Turkey assisting with research and reports on the socio-economic and socio-cultural conditions of the Kurdish people who have been forcibly displaced due to the armed conflict in the area. She is happy to return to her home state of Texas working for KIND in an issue that is very important to her.

Prior to working at KIND, Salma worked as the Yale Leonard and Irene Merker Rosenberg Public Interest Fellow/Staff Attorney at Tahirih Justice Center. At Tahirih, Salma represented women and children fleeing extreme forms of violence, providing both direct and pro bono mentoring immigration legal services. She received her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Houston Law Center, where she worked in the Immigration and Civil Practice Clinics. She interned at Lone Star legal Aid and Montgomery County Women’s Center, working with survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. Salma graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Rhetoric & Writing and Government. She is licensed to practice law in Texas.

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Lauren Leal was born and raised in Port Lavaca, Texas. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from The University of Texas at Austin in 2012 and her Juris Doctor from St. Mary’s University School of Law in 2015. While studying law she worked as a student attorney and research assistant for the St. Mary’s Center For Legal and Social Justice’s Civil Justice Clinic where she represented low-income clients in various areas of the law with a focus on Social Security Disability cases. Upon Graduating, Lauren began her legal career working at Heard and Smith LLP a Social Security Disability firm helping those in need receive the benefits they are entitled to by going before an Administrative Law Judge. After that time, Lauren took a position at Catholic Charities San Antonio – Caritas Legal Services where she worked under a grant to provide legal services to victims of domestic violence seeking protective orders and expanded her experience in State court working on various civil suits. Lauren is passionate in helping the marginalized and oppressed seek justice. Lauren is licensed to practice law in Texas.

Yvonne was born in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Her parents, from Puerto Rico and Poland, raised her in Puerto Rico until she moved to the United States in 2011. She has 23 years of experience as an attorney in different fields of law. While in Puerto Rico, she led a successful private practice for about 10 years, in the areas of Family, Business and Labor Law. At the top of her career, before leaving Puerto Rico, she served as a Judge in Labor Law related proceedings. Yvonne started to practice Immigration Law as a Staff Attorney at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston by representing unaccompanied children facing removal proceedings, while detained in shelters, under the Foster Care Program and those who were released in Houston. At Catholic Charities, she also worked for the Legal Orientation Program for Custodians (LOPC) by conducting legal orientations at the Houston Immigration Court for children and sponsors that were facing removal proceedings without an attorney. Prior to working at KIND, Yvonne worked as an attorney in private practice, representing children and adult clients before Family Court, Houston Immigration Court and USCIS’ office. There, she focused on removal defense representing clients pursuing several forms of immigration relief. Yvonne’s passion, as an attorney, is to fight for justice and fairness on behalf of her clients. She is licensed to practice law in the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, The Texas State Bar, The United States District Court for the Judicial District of Puerto Rico and The United States Court of Appeals for The First Circuit. On her free time, Yvonne enjoys to spend time with her family, go biking and listen to music.

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Gerard is a native and citizen of Texas who received his Bachelor in Arts in Latin American Studies and his Juris Doctor from the University of Texas – Austin. While in law school, he acted as a student attorney in the Immigration Clinic and the Transnational Worker’s Rights Clinic. Prior to joining KIND, Gerard Lynch worked with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston – Houston providing representation to detained and released unaccompanied children.

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Monica Myint was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Texas A&M University in 2010 and her Juris Doctor from South Texas College of Law in 2013. During her time in law school, Monica worked with the Harris County Attorney’s Office and the Children’s Assessment Center on cases involving child abuse and neglect, and also worked as a student attorney in the South Texas College of Law’s Legal Clinic representing low-income clients in family law cases. Prior to working at KIND, Monica worked as an attorney in private practice where she represented clients throughout all stages of family law related proceedings and always strived to protect the best interests of children. Monica has been with KIND since June 2019 and is licensed to practice law in Texas.

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Natalia is a first-gen Chicana from Northern California and thanks to her persistent parents, she is bilingual in Spanish. Before joining KIND’s Houston office, she resided in WA State and graduated from The Evergreen State College with an emphasis in Cultural Studies. She has several years of experience working in the violence prevention field, as an advocate for survivors of domestic and sexual violence. As a teacher and coordinator of an English Language Learner’s program in WA State, she decided once in Texas, she’d return to working with the immigrant community. She’s very happy to have landed at KIND’s Houston office!

Marisa was raised in Houston, Texas, and received her Bachelor of Arts in English from Utah State University. As a law student at Lewis & Clark Law School she learned the importance of trauma informed practice by participating in the National Crime Victim Law Institute clinic. Prior to graduating Marisa worked with asylum seekers in Costa Rica as an intern with the Association de Consultores y Asesores Internacionales (ACAI). She also completed internships with Catholic Charities of Oregon, and KIND. After graduating from law school in 2015, Marisa returned to Texas where she has worked providing representation to unaccompanied children in ORR custody, adults in ICE detention, and asylum seekers in removal proceedings. She has experience providing immigration legal services in both direct representation and pro bono mentoring programs. Marisa is licensed to practice law in Texas and speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

Carmen is a native Houstonian and first generation Latino American. From a very young age, her mother instilled in her the importance of obtaining an education, so she set her eyes on achieving the highest level education she could possibly obtain. Carmen graduated from Houston Baptist University where she received a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry-Molecular Biology and Chemistry. After graduating, she worked as a data collector for the Children’s Learning Institute at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. During her time at UT Health, she realized that there was a great need for legal representation in the Latino community, so she decided to attend law school. Carmen graduated magna cum laude from Thurgood Marshall School of Law. During law school, she participated in Mock Trial and served as a board member in the Hispanic Law Student Association. She also interned for the Innocence Project, TMSL Criminal Law Clinic and clerked for a local immigration firm in Houston.

Angelica Rodriguez was born and raised in Houston, TX. She graduated from the University of Houston with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a minor in Spanish. Angelica’s desire to help those who can’t defend themselves has encouraged her to join KIND, originally as a Program Assistant and now as a Paralegal. Prior to working with KIND, Angelica worked with other non-profits like, The ABA’s Children’s Immigration Law Academy and the Head Start program with Gulf Coast Community Services Association. Angelica has interned with The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission where she worked with Federal Investigators who reviewed discrimination cases that had been filed by the public. Angelica enjoys working with KIND because it allows her an opportunity to provide those who are scared to speak, a chance to share their side of the story.

Bio coming soon.

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