Board Members

Adriana Jones Lima serves as a PR Offering Manager at OneTrust – the #1 most widely used privacy, security and trust technology platform. In his role, Adriana develop fully integrated, multi-channel public relations campaigns that meet business goals while partnering with internal teams and external stakeholders across the entire OneTrust brand. Adriana is a privacy and technology rights champion and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/E, CIPM). Prior to joining the tech world, Adriana worked in higher education and non-profit sector.

Kristen Rademacher is a founding Board Member for United States Youth Forum. Although originally hailing from St. Paul, MN, she has spent years working abroad until finally landing the position of Head Librarian at Marist High School in Chicago. She holds a Masters of Information Science from Dominican University, serves on two different education boards in Illinois, and has over 20 years of teaching experience from grades K-12. She is very excited to be part of this important project.

Melissa Ballard is the founder and executive director of the United States Youth Forum. Before USYF, Melissa earned a double-MA degree in International Relations from the University of Kent in Canterbury, England, and the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, Russia. Currently Melissa works as a project manager where she oversees international projects, video production, and social media campaigns. She also researches, writes, and records podcasts with the youth-led publishing platform, the International Scholar. Her hobbies include cooking, reading, traveling, and watching a good movie on a Friday night. Melissa believes that the student loan crisis is one of the most acute crises facing American youth, and requires policy solutions that are long-term in thinking.

Kaitlin Nguyen is a recent graduate at the University of California, Berkeley with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and a current Legal Assistant planning to attend law school in 2023. She hopes to pursue a career in the human rights and environmental sectors. Her interests include reading, cooking, volunteering, petting dogs, and exploring cities. She encourages youth and everyone of all ages to learn about the myriad of ways to participate in various political and community channels.

Kyle is a civil engineer with 7 years of experience in a variety of fields, including highways, public transit, land development, and renewable wind energy. He takes pride in being involved in improving America’s infrastructure, and loves watching a project go from concept drawings to a finished product out in the field. Kyle graduated with a bachelors degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth and is working towards obtaining his professional engineering license. He and his wife reside in Minnesota with their two cats, and enjoy traveling, hiking, and watching a good movie.

Sofia Tabernilla is a recent graduate of the University of Virginia where she double majored in History and Art History and minored in Astronomy. She plans to attend law school in 2022 and would like to pursue a career in the non-profit sector. Sofia currently volunteers as a Program Associate with USYF as well as Secretary of the Advisory Board. Sofia is passionate about the environment and believes climate change is one of the most serious threats facing the youth of today. Some of her hobbies include painting, working with animals, and snorkeling.