OUR STAFF
QUIANYA ENGE
Research and Development Manager
Quianya L. Enge is a doctoral candidate in Higher Education and Administration (with plans to finish in May of 2024) as well as the lead Research and Development Manager for the Illinois Coalition to End Permanent Punishments.
Her experience comes from the Office of Innovation and Economic Development (OIED) at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. OIED at Southern Illinois University Carbondale is the Southern Illinois regional gateway to networks and collective knowledge ready to assist businesses and start-up entrepreneurs with everything from creating a business plan to attracting equity investments.
As a member of the directly impacted community serving 11 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, she is the Founder and current Executive Director of Beyond the Walls, a not-for-profit organization focused on empowering those directly impacted by the criminal legal systems (especially women) through education and entrepreneurship. BTW is a mobile community navigation resource for those impacted by the carceral system returning to southern Illinois. She is also the Communications Manager on the FullyFree Campaign to end permanent punishments in Illinois. She leads the research initiative on the intersectionality of the re-entry process and civic engagement. As a thought leader and social justice activist, she believes that reentry is a community suitability issue and civic engagement needs to be at the helm of re-engagement. Her work is actively closing the opportunity and wealth gaps by promoting self-advocacy in policies through research and making economic development more inclusive, specifically for systematically disadvantaged communities.
GREGORY CHAMBERS
Director of Policy
Gregory Chambers’ association with various community-based organizations and campaigns in the interest of criminal justice reform include the Community Renewal Society, People’s Liberty Project, Illinois Alliance for Re-entry and Justice, Restoring Rights and Opportunities Coalition of Illinois (RROCI), Illinois Justice Project, Restore Justice, Just Leadership USA, Black Policy Institute, Midwest Academy, Coalition to End Money Bond, People’s Coalition for Safety and Freedom, Fully Free, and Live Free Illinois has given him a foundation to thrive as part of the Illinois Coalition to End Permanent Punishments.
After serving as policy organizer for Live Free Illinois, in June of 2023 he was asked to join ENDPP.ORG as its Policy Manager. Beyond the foundation mentioned above, he brings to the table the best of both worlds. After serving several years as a law enforcement officer in the city of Chicago, he served a lengthy term of imprisonment where he gained the compassion necessary to advocate for just policies and laws to better serve marginalized people in communities that are disproportionately impacted by the criminal justice system.
PAUL ROTHSCHILD
Managing Director of Operations
Having volunteered with the Fully Free Campaign, the Illinois Alliance for Reentry and Justice, and the People’s Coalition for Safety and Freedom (and more!) over the last three years, Paul Rothschild joined ENDPP.ORG as our Operations Manager on 5/5/2023. Paul brings decades of experience in leadership from the corporate world, from small business to publicly traded organizations, in business operations, IT, finance, and HR, in addition to his own lived experience, having served a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence in federal prison, to help ENDPP.ORG streamline, professionalize and prepare for growth. Paul’s passion for this work grew out of the shocking experience of the disproportionate effect of incarceration on black, indigenous and people of color, and his own experience of the continuation of privilege after release on the processes of reentry, reintegration, and restoration of rights.
SHIMERE LOVE
Coalition Coordinator
Shimere Love is a dedicated advocate for criminal legal system reform, with a rich and diverse background. A distinguished graduate from Rockford Career College with a background in paralegal studies certification, Shimere’s professional journey encompasses diverse roles.
Shimere has embraced a new role as the Coalition Coordinator at the Illinois Coalition to End Permanent Punishments (ENDPP.ORG), where she will actively contribute to impactful initiatives aimed at dismantling barriers to education, employment, housing, and civic engagement.
Having served 2.5 years of a 9-year prison sentence in a Wisconsin state women’s prison, she emerged stronger, later channeling her resilience into academic pursuits. As a committed advocate for men and especially women with incarceration backgrounds, she draws from her personal experiences to provide empathy and support.
Post-incarceration, Shimere achieved a significant milestone by completing her education. This triumph marked the beginning of a new chapter in her life. Shimere’s entrepreneurial spirit led her to establish Sisters By Love, a business crafting handmade hair oil and misting spray.
Beyond her professional and entrepreneurial endeavors, Shimere is an accomplished writer currently working on her first book, “Rewriting the Narrative: Advocating for Myself,” set to be published by July 2024. Her story is a testament to her resilience, strength, and commitment to making a positive impact in various facets of life.
HARRY PEÑA
Chicago-based Organizer
Harry Pena is the Campaign Manager for the Illinois Coalition To End Permanent Punishments. He is also the coalition manager for the Fully Free Campaign which advocates for the rights and dignity of people impacted by the criminal legal system. Harry has over 22.5 years of lived experience and has founded several reentry programs and resources for returning citizens through his organization Life Impacters Foundation located in Chicago. He is passionate about bringing freedom and justice to systemically oppressed communities. He lives in the Austin neighborhood with his wife, Yolanda.
OUR BOARD
WILLETTE BENFORD
Former Director of Reentry
City of Chicago
FLOYD STAFFORD
Program Officer
Steans Family Foundation
DR. QUINTIN WILLIAMS
Program Officer
The Joyce Foundation
PARTNERS
Our partners and their roles vary, depending on the campaign with which they are most engaged. However, they include organizations like ACLU of Illinois, All of Us or None of Us, Alliance for Safety and Justice, Beyond the Walls, Cabrini Green Legal Aid, Equity and Transformation, Illinois Justice Project, Restore Justice Illinois, and the Safer Foundation.
We also work with consultants who are experts in Illinois policy and legislative advocacy.
Legislative champions and interested public officials are being recruited for the campaigns, and will again vary based on the timeline and the legislation. Several key Black Caucus legislators have taken a strong interest in being involved, such as State Representative Carol Ammons, State Representative Lakeisha Collins, State Representative Justin Slaughter, and State Senator Robert Peters.
As the various criminal legal system reform campaigns that are out there in Illinois make their way through the Illinois General Assembly, our organization is unique in that we are looking to lead efforts related to opening up opportunity to people with records on the back end of their system involvement. At the same time, we are intertwined with the other campaigns and working together with them to determine which should be upcoming priorities given the political climate in Illinois at any given time.
