Staff
Adrian Bispham, Case Manager
Adrian's journey with social justice began while getting his legal degree at Northeastern University School of Law where he participated in bringing restorative justice circles to schools as alternatives for school discipline.
Upon graduation he continued to be an active advocate for social justice and while working as an Assistant District Attorney at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office from 2011 to 2022. Partnering with programs such as Roxbury Choice, ROCA, the TPP (Transformational Prison Project) and facilitating cases in both drug and mental health courts he was always a champion for 2nd chances and alternatives to the traditional criminal justice system model. During his time at SCDAO he Chaired the office's Diversity Equity and Inclusion committee in an effort to increase inclusion and deepen understanding of differences within the office.
After leaving the office Adrian worked in private practice at King, Tilden, McEttrick and Brink and later Morgan, Brown & Joy on insurance fraud and employment law. He also has a strong passion for health and fitness and has coached boxing and strength training since 2022.
Erin Freeborn, Executive Director
Erin Freeborn has been the Executive Director of Communities for Restorative Justice since 2015. As a social entrepreneur, she encourages programs to think about new ways to create positive social change. She is an attorney who helped found the Massachusetts RJ Collaborative and was deeply involved in criminal justice reform legislation in 2018 that made RJ available in the Massachusetts criminal courts. She was the first RJ practitioner named by Governor Baker to the statewide Restorative Justice Advisory Committee created by the 2018 law.
Prior to leading C4RJ, Erin coauthored the 2010 exploratory study of Project Restore, a Study of RJ and Sexual Violence, commissioned by New Zealand’s Ministry of Justice, and co-founded a start-up RJ non-profit working with the Middlesex District Attorney's Office.
Freeborn has extensive experience presenting in front of members of law enforcement, the legislature, and community groups from Massachusetts and beyond. These presentations range from small trainings to large presentations.
Erin holds a J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law, as well as a Master of Divinity and a Certificate of Conflict Transformation from Boston University.
Tamara (Tammy) Hopkins, Director of Development
Tammy Hopkins brings over 20 years of nonprofit leadership experience across the Arts & Culture, Education, and Health & Wellness sectors. Her career reflects a deep commitment to community engagement and innovative partnerships.
For 14 years, Tammy played a pivotal role in establishing Western North Carolina as a hub for film and the arts. She was instrumental in launching the Blue Zones Project in Brevard, NC, guiding the community to achieve its Blue Zones certification for healthy living. Most recently, she supported the development of a collaborative network of 38 nonprofit organizations serving the Somerville, MA area—strengthening collective impact and resource-sharing across the region.
Outside of work, Tammy enjoys working on film projects, boogie boarding, riding her e-bike, and exploring the natural beauty of coastal Massachusetts.
Danielle Kennedy, Development and Communications Associate
Danielle is the Development and Communications Associate. Before coming to C4RJ, Danielle was a freelance writer and editor for several years, serving a wide range of clients in the non-profit world, small business, and academia. When she discovered C4RJ and learned about restorative justice, she knew this was the path forward. A linguistics and psychology major, she has always been passionate about language, the written word, and how humans relate to one another, so bringing these skills to grant work at C4RJ was a natural fit. In her free time, you can find her exploring the outdoors or exploring indoors with a good book or culinary adventure.
Julia Parham, Service Specialist and Assistant Case Manager
Julia Parham came to C4RJ as an intern in 2025 and quickly fell in love with its mission and model. A recent graduate of Bates College with a double major in politics and psychology, she became especially interested in how restorative practices create space for critical analysis of systemic harm and meaningful individual transformation. In her role with the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Clinic at Northeastern School of Law, Julia served as a legal research assistant investigating cases of racially motivated homicides from the Jim Crow South, contributing to efforts to secure restitution for descendants.
At Bates, she served as a Restorative Practices Advisor, building a peer education program from the ground up and developing curriculum on mediation and conflict resolution. She is also currently a volunteer with College Guild, an organization that provides free courses that connect incarcerated people with a community beyond prison walls. Throughout her work, Julia remains motivated by the possibility of building communities rooted in empathy and shared responsibility, and is excited to bring that passion to C4RJ. In her free time, she enjoys exploring new neighborhoods, reading, and cooking with her roommates.
Amanda Ruiz, Director of Operations
Amanda Ruiz (she/they) is C4RJ's Director of Operations. Amanda is from Lynn, MA and has been passionate about serving communities her whole life. As a survivor, she found restorative practices deeply life-changing, helping her recognize and embrace principles she had long felt but had never formally encountered.
In 2019, she received her BA in Crime & Justice Studies and Spanish from University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. At UMD, she was part of the Inside-Out program which brought together students and the incarcerated community taking a college seminar and circle processes. Her other professional experience includes roles in the Probation and District Attorney’s Offices in Bristol and Suffolk Counties, advancing community engagement, DEI, and cross-agency collaboration.
She can often be found with her pets taking adventures or in a quiet place enjoying a nice book or movie.
Nathan Simms, Director of Programs
Nathan Simms is a seasoned professional in nonprofit management and government relations, holding a Master of Science in Nonprofit Management with a focus on Leadership from Northeastern University, earned in May 2017. His academic involvement included programs like the Balfour Academy Scholar initiative and the Martin Luther King Jr. Fellowship. He received his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with a minor in Political Science from the same institution in May 2010.
Most recently, Nathan served as the Director of Government Relations and Public Policy at Mass Mentoring Partnership from 2022 to 2024, where he developed the organization's public policy agenda and collaborated with policymakers to secure funding for youth mentoring programs. Before that, he served as the Director of External Affairs and Community and Governmental Relations at Roxbury Community College, where he enhanced relationships with community leaders and government officials to further the college's mission. His earlier role as a Community Outreach Coordinator at Northeastern University involved building connections and promoting community engagement.
Beyond his professional roles, Nathan is active in various capacities, including serving on the Board of Trustees for Edward M. Kennedy Academy for Health Careers and the Board of Directors for EV Kids. He also mentors with the Red Pine Scholars program and Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters, while working part-time as a Public Policy Consultant and Youth Development Teen Leader with the YMCA. Nathan's commitment to advocating for underserved youth and building community relationships drives his efforts toward impactful policy change in the nonprofit sector.
Jocy Semedo, Restorative Clinician and Administrative Program Coordinator
Jocyline (Jocy) Semedo is the Administrative Program Coordinator at Communities for Restorative Justice. Originally from Brockton, MA, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Black Studies from UMass Dartmouth (Class of 2019), and her Master of Social Work with a certificate in Trauma Practice from Simmons University in 2023, and has since become a Licensed Certified Social Worker (LCSW).
Her passion for restorative justice was sparked during her time as a Program Manager at Roca in Boston, where she worked closely with high-risk young people and was introduced to circle practices and the principles of transformational and distributive justice. Seeing the impact of healing-centered engagement firsthand deepened her commitment to community-led solutions and long-term systems change.
Prior to that, Jocy also served as a counselor at MCI Concord, a medium-security facility, where she supported incarcerated individuals through a trauma-informed lens. She is excited to bring together her clinical background and restorative justice experience to support C4RJ’s mission of healing and accountability.
In her free time, Jocy loves being outdoors, cooking, or staying in to rewatch her favorite old sitcoms.
