Monica Porter, J.D.

Monica Porter joined the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law in 2022 as the Policy & Legal Advocacy Attorney, bringing experience working with communities on disability rights, housing and homelessness, and access to justice.

Monica’s previous work includes advocating with and on behalf of higher education students with mental health disabilities at Disability Rights Advocates, including issues related to leaves of absence, reasonable accommodations, and access to education and housing. At Homebase: The Center for Common Concerns, Monica worked with communities to increase capacity to end homelessness, including responding to COVID-19, increasing Census 2020 participation, and building cross-sector work through the Criminal Legal System Initiative.

Monica holds a J.D. from The George Washington University Law School, and a B.A. in Social Welfare from U.C. Berkeley. During law school, Monica worked with the Disability Rights Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, Bay Area Legal Aid, Legal Aid Society– Employment Law Center, GW Law Public Justice Advocacy Clinic, and clerked for the Honorable Cynthia McKnight at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Monica is also a proud AmeriCorps Alum, having launched her career in public service as a Bay Area JusticeCorps Fellow.