Founded in 1999 as the Housing Preservation Project, Housing Justice Center (HJC) is a nonprofit public interest advocacy and legal organization whose primary mission is to preserve and expand affordable housing for low-income individuals and families.
HJC attorneys work with tenant and advocacy organizations, public and private housing funders, owners, developers, and policy makers in their efforts to protect and expand affordable housing. Based in Minnesota, HJC works nationwide.
Margaret Kaplan
President
Margaret graduated cum laude from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2003 and began her legal career with the Housing Preservation Project. Margaret brings a wealth of knowledge about local, state, and federal housing policy and programs as well as a robust background in the intersection of community organizing and the law…
Contact Margaret at mkaplan@hjcmn.org

Tim Thompson
Senior Staff Attorney
Tim Thompson is a 1975 graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School. Tim has worked for various legal services programs for more than 25 years, specializing in tenants’ rights, government housing programs and class actions. Tim’s cases have had far reaching impact on the rights of the poor and communities of color…
Contact Tim at tthompson@hjcmn.org

Jessica Szuminski
Housing Justice Litigator
Jessica joined HJC’s litigation team in September 2022. She is eager to support the expansion of affordable housing and the rights of tenants by eliminating needless barriers. Prior to her work with HJC, Jessica spent a year as a law clerk in Hennepin County Juvenile Court after graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School…
Contact Jessica at jszuminski@hjcmn.org

Teresa Garcia-Delcompare
Community Organizer
Teresa is originally from Guatemala and came to the United States when she was five years old. Her experiences with affordable housing and the need that she has seen in her community motivate her as an organizer. Teresa is looking forward to supporting her community…
Contact Teresa at tgarcia-delcompare@hjcmn.org

Emma Diers
AmeriCorps VISTA Tenant Organizer
Emma graduated from Carleton College in 2021 with a degree in Political Science. Before HJC, Emma worked as a paraprofessional teacher with the Migrant Education Program in East Central Illinois and as an English language assistant at a high school in France! In her free time Emma enjoys hiking, reading, and knitting…
Contact Emma at ediers@hjcmn.org

Ivory Taylor
Associate Director
Ivory is the Associate Director of Housing Justice Center. Since 2017, she has worked to advance the rights of renters in Minnesota by engaging in both grassroots organizing and policy and systems change advocacy. She is also deeply committed to building local organizing infrastructure and supporting new organizers…
Contact Ivory at itaylor@hjcmn.org

Jack Cann
Senior Staff Attorney
Jack Cann graduated from Carleton College in 1964 and graduated magna cum laude from William Mitchell College of Law in 1986. Jack has a unique breadth of experience relevant to housing litigation, including tenants’ rights organizing, advocacy, lobbying, and real estate development and finance…
Contact Jack at jcann@hjcmn.org

Zaria Whitlock
Paralegal
Zaria joined HJC in September 2021, as a paralegal. Zaria attended Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and graduated summa cum laude in 2021. Zaria graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Philosophy and Sociology with a specialization in Diversity and Social Justice along with a minor in Black Studies…
Contact Zaria at zwhitlock@hjcmn.org

Ellie Benson
Office Manager & Communications Associate
Ellie Benson joined HJC in September 2022 as Office Manager. In her previous tenant organizing work, Ellie had the opportunity to build renter power to improve housing conditions and move rent stabilization forward in Minneapolis. She’s excited to tap into her administrative skillset…
Contact Ellie at ebenson@hjcmn.org

Steph Kletscher
Law Clerk
Steph is a 2L at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. Steph spent her 1L summer working at a Legal Aid and quickly developed a passion for housing law and advocacy. She is excited to dive in and see legal advocacy break down barriers to affordable housing. In her free time, you can find Steph outside with her dog…
Contact Steph at skletscher@hjcmn.org

Jim Poradek
Director of Litigation
Jim works with tenants and community organizations to enforce their legal rights to fair, safe, and affordable housing. Jim’s work in housing justice law goes back to the 1990s, when he worked as a community organizer and affordable housing activist in Washington, DC., later attending the University of Minnesota Law School…
Contact Jim at jporadek@hjcmn.org

Abbie Hanson
Housing Justice Litigator
Abbie joined Housing Justice Center’s litigation team in August 2022. She attended the University of Minnesota Law School and graduated magna cum laude in 2021. During law school, Abbie worked at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid and Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services, supporting their family law, public benefits, and elder law units…
Contact Abbie at ahanson@hjcmn.org

Benjamin Fischer
Rental Assistance Navigator
Benjamin joined the HJC team as a Rental Assistance Navigator in November 2021. Since the end of the COVID Emergency Rental Assistance program, Ben has been answering and directing calls on our general phone line. Benjamin graduated from Mankato State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science…
Contact Benjamin at bfischer@hjcmn.org

Markanetta Smith
Housing Systems Navigator
Markanetta graduated from the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and earned an MSW degree in 2017. She is passionate about social justice and equity and seeks to help members of marginalized communities gain access to the opportunities and services that are often denied to them. She started at HJC in 2021…
Contact Markanetta at msmith@hjcmn.org

Margaret Kaplan
President
Margaret graduated cum laude from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2003 and began her legal career with the Housing Preservation Project. She began her career as a community organizer, fighting for the rights of manufactured home community members with All Parks Alliance for Change. After law school, Margaret joined HJC under its former name Housing Preservation Project, where she worked on a range of issues including preservation of federally subsidized housing and manufactured home community preservation. She then returned to APAC as the Legal and Public Policy Director where she helped resident associations fight for their rights in parks, represented resident associations in court, and helped push legislation to support manufactured homeowners, including a law that prevented deceptive lending practices and creation of the relocation trust fund for homeowners displaced through park closures.
Next, she spent four years at the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs as the Operations Director for the Minnesota Center for Neighborhood Organizing, working to ensure that people affected by decisions had the tools and skills to organize and advocate on issues ranging from education to transportation to police community relations to housing. Most recently she spent six years as the Community Development Director at Minnesota Housing where she worked to create connections between community needs across the state of Minnesota and the programs and policies of Minnesota Housing. Margaret was also a policy fellow with the North Star Policy Institute. She brings a wealth of knowledge about local, state, and federal housing policy and programs as well as a robust background in the intersection of community organizing and the law.
Contact Margaret at mkaplan@hjcmn.org

Ivory Taylor
Associate Director
Ivory Taylor is the Associate Director of Housing Justice Center. Since 2017, she has worked to advance and ensure the rights of renters in Minnesota by engaging in both grassroots organizing and local and state level policy and systems change advocacy. She is also deeply committed to building local organizing infrastructure and providing ongoing support to new organizers. Driven by her personal experiences with housing instability, she is determined to see a shift in the dominant narratives and systems that deny housing access and justice for so many in Minnesota and beyond.
Contact Ivory at itaylor@hjcmn.org

Tim Thompson
Senior Staff Attorney
Contact Tim at tthompson@hjcmn.org

Jack Cann
Senior Staff Attorney
Contact Jack at jcann@hjcmn.org

Jim Poradek
Housing Rights Attorney
Contact Jim at jporadek@hjcmn.org

Teresa Garcia-Delcompare
Community Organizer
Teresa is originally from Guatemala and came to the United States when she was five years old. She graduated from Humboldt High School, then continued her education as a Spanish community interpreter. Teresa considers it such a blessing to be a part of Housing Justice Center as a Community Organizer. Her experiences with affordable housing and the need that she has seen in her community are part of the reasons why she applied for this position. Teresa is looking forward to supporting her community and creating a positive change.
Contact Teresa at tgarcia-delcompare@hjcmn.org

Zaria Whitlock
Paralegal
Zaria joined Housing Justice Center in September 2021 as a paralegal. Zaria attended Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and graduated summa cum laude in 2021. Zaria graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Philosophy and Sociology with a specialization in Diversity and Social Justice along with a minor in Black Studies. Zaria is passionate about expanding and protecting the resources provided to members of protected classes who are often disadvantaged by the systems functioning in society. Zaria is especially interested in dismantling mechanisms that disenfranchise people from accessing sufficient legal advocacy. Zaria is a native of St. Paul, Minnesota and is excited to have the opportunity to work alongside the HJC team to positively impact her hometown. In her spare time, Zaria enjoys spending time with family, watching TV, and listening to music.
Contact Zaria at zwhitlock@hjcmn.org

Markanetta Smith
Rental Assistance Navigator
Markanetta graduated from the University of Minnesota School of Social Work and earned an MSW degree in 2017. She is passionate about social justice and equity and seeks to help members of marginalized communities gain access to the opportunities and services that are often denied to them. She started at Housing Justice Center in 2021.
Contact Markanetta at msmith@hjcmn.org

Steph Kletscher
Law Clerk
Steph is a 2L at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. Steph spent her 1L summer working at a Legal Aid and quickly developed a passion for housing law and advocacy. She is excited to dive in and see legal advocacy break down barriers to affordable housing. In her free time, you can find Steph outside with her dog, hiking, camping, or checking out a local bookstore in search of her next campfire novel.
Contact Steph at skletscher@hjcmn.org

Emma Diers
AmeriCorps VISTA Tenant Organizer
Emma joined Housing Justice Center in August 2022 as a VISTA tenant organizer. She graduated from Carleton College in 2021 with a degree in Political Science. Before Housing Justice Center, Emma worked as a paraprofessional teacher with the Migrant Education Program in East Central Illinois and as an English language assistant at a high school in Cournon d’Auvergne, France. She is excited to learn about organizing and tenant law while supporting members of her new community! In her free time Emma enjoys hiking, reading, and knitting.
Contact Emma at ediers@hjcmn.org

Ellie Benson
Office Manager & Communications Associate
Ellie Benson joined Housing Justice Center in September 2022 as Office Manager & Communications Associate. In her previous tenant organizing work, Ellie had the opportunity to build renter power to improve housing conditions and move rent stabilization forward in Minneapolis. She’s excited to tap into her administrative skillset to advance housing justice across Minnesota. Ellie graduated from Macalester College and is currently pursuing her Masters in Advocacy and Political Leadership at Metro State.
Contact Ellie at ebenson@hjcmn.org

Abbie Hanson
Housing Justice Litigator
Abbie joined Housing Justice Center’s litigation team in August 2022. She attended the University of Minnesota Law School and graduated magna cum laude in 2021. During law school, Abbie worked at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid and Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services, supporting their family law, public benefits, and elder law units. After law school, she spent a year as a law clerk for the Minnesota Court of Appeals. Abbie is excited to contribute to HJC’s work advocating for safe, stable, and affordable places to call home in communities across Minnesota.
Contact Abbie at ahanson@hjcmn.org

Benjamin Fischer
Rental Assistance Navigator
Benjamin joined the HJC team as Rental Assistance Navigator in November 2021. Since the end of the COVID Emergency Rental Assistance program, Ben has been answering and directing phone calls on our general line. Benjamin graduated from Mankato State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science specializing in American public policy with a Minor in Psychology. Ben is passionate about community service and ensuring all Minnesotans have access to stable and affordable housing.
Contact Ben at bfischer@hjcmn.org

Jessica Szuminski
Housing Justice Litigator
Jessica joined Housing Justice Center’s litigation team in September 2022. She is eager to support the expansion of affordable housing and the rights of tenants by eliminating needless barriers. Prior to her work with HJC, Jessica spent a year as a law clerk in Hennepin County Juvenile Court after graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2021. Jessica brings her experience working alongside clients from low-income and other marginalized backgrounds as well as her passion for developing creative solutions through thoughtful collaboration.
Contact Jessica at jszuminski@hjcmn.org
To contact the Housing Justice Center Board of Directors, please email board@hjcmn.org.

Walter Battle
Board Chair

Eric Hauge
Board Secretary

Maria Johnson
Board Member

Warren Hanson
Board Member

Martha Hernández-Martínez, MPA
Board Vice-Chair

Linda Soderstrom
Board Member

David Anderson
Board Member

Howard Goldman
Board Treasurer

Richard Kahn
Board Member

Michael Bodaken
Board Member

Walter Battle
Board Chair

Martha Hernández-Martínez, MPA
Board Vice-Chair

Howard Goldman
Board Treasurer

Eric Hauge
Board Secretary

Linda Soderstrom
Board Member

Richard Kahn
Board Member

Maria Johnson
Board Member

David Anderson
Board Member

Michael Bodaken
Board Member

Warren Hanson
Board Member
- Legal Services Advisory Committee
- Equal Justice Works sponsored by Target Corporation
- McKnight Foundation
- Otto Bremer Trust
- Target Foundation
- Minnesota State Bar Foundation
- Heading Home Funders Collaborative
- Greater Minnesota Housing Fund
- Minnesota Housing
- Corporation for National and Community Service (AmeriCorps VISTA)