Staff
Melissa Stimell is a professor of the practice in the Legal Studies Program, chair of the program in Social Justice and Social Policy and director of ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation. Stimell currently teaches Advocacy for Policy Change, Conflict Analysis and Intervention, and Global Justice and Societies in Transition. She also has led Brandeis Summer in The Hague and the seminars accompanying the internship programs. Stimell received her undergraduate degree from Cornell University and her law degree from Boston University School of Law. She has been a public interest attorney for over 30 years, focusing on the representation of vulnerable populations in such areas as criminal law, discrimination of individuals with disabilities, and child welfare.
In his role as Assistant Director of ENACT, David Weinstein coordinates the national expansion of the Educational Network for Active Civic Engagement program and supports ENACT faculty, students, staff and alumni across the United States. He co-founded and coordinates Brandeis University's VoteDeis Campus Coalition, which encourages voter registration and participation, and leads the multi-campus ENACT Your Vote initiative. He previously served as Assistant Director of ENACT and Communications for the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life, where he managed communications, served as coordinator of the Ethics Center Leadership Council and was editor of the Ethics Central newsletter and the Ethical Inquiry series. He has also worked with the Office of Global Affairs to support international exchanges of students and faculty.
Weinstein is an educator with K-12 teaching experience in public and alternative school settings and has more than 20 years of program management and communications experience in nonprofits and higher education. In 2020, he was elected to the Cambridge Massachusetts School Committee, and has since been re-elected twice.
Weinstein is a graduate of Wesleyan University, where he earned a bachelor's in American studies, and holds a master's in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
Powley teaches ENACT-related courses at Brandeis and supports ENACT research.
Powley completed her PhD in Social Policy in 2020 at the Heller School for Policy and Research, where her doctoral work focused on menstrual management and students’ experiences of menstruation in US public schools. Most recently Powley was an Assistant Teaching Professor at Simmons University in their public health department. Powley supported ENACT research initiatives during her graduate work, and served as a teaching assistant for the Brandeis ENACT course in 2020 and 2021.
She will be teaching the ENACT course "Gender, Justice, and Legislation" (LGLS 118B) in spring 2024.
Jay R. Kaufman served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1995 through 2018, and now leads a nonprofit organization, Beacon Leadership Collaborative, which provides leadership education, mentoring and professional-development support to those in, and aspiring to, public life. In the House, Kaufman chaired the Committee on Revenue and led the charge for a major reform of state and local taxes. He also initiated major pension reforms, environmental protection legislation and policies to promote social and economic justice. His "Open House" monthly public policy forum was recognized in 1997 with the Beacon Award as the nation's best televised government relations series. Kaufman's new nonprofit offers workshops and consultation to individuals, groups and institutions working in the public square. He brings to the collaborative three decades of teaching and project design and management in the public and nonprofit sectors. Kaufman holds a bachelor's degree in philosophy and master's degree in history from Brandeis as well as a master's in history from New York University. He serves as the Distinguished Legislative Mentor for the Ethics Center's national ENACT program.