With a master's degree in International Policy Studies from Stanford University, Jessie Brunner brings policy expertise focused on human rights, democracy, rule of law, and global justice to her position as Program Manager at the Handa Center. Here she manages student programs, including the new Minor in Human Rights, as well as Center collaborations and several research activities. Jessie's research is currently focused on human trafficking prevalence data and the use of prolonged solitary confinement in the U.S. prison system. Previously, she served as a researcher at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law’s Program on Human Rights; a Public Affairs Assistant at the State Department in the Bureau on Democracy, Human Rights and Labor; a reporter for Los Angeles Times Community News; and a non-profit public relations/marketing manager. In addition to serving as a trial monitor at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia, Jessie's research has also taken her to Brazil, Thailand, Indonesia, Rwanda, Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Chile. Brunner graduated with Highest Distinction from UC Berkeley with a BA in Mass Communications and a Spanish minor.
The WSD HANDA Center for Human Rights and International Justice would like to thank its ambassador, Michael Bolton, for his support through the charity concert in Japan on September 5, 2013 which has helped the Center to employ Jessie Brunner to further advance its work.
