National Convening Program Books 2015 YEO National Convening Program Book | Page 52

YEO Bios Courtney Curtis State Representative Berkeley, Missouri State Representative Courtney Curtis was first elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in November 2012, and was re-elected in 2014. He was the president of the Freshman Caucus for his political party and chair of the Freshman Bipartisan Issues Committee, leading him to be named Associated Students of the University of Missouri Legislator of the Year. Currently, he is the only member of his political party chairing a committee, the Special Standing Committee on Urban Issues. He is also vice-chair of the Fannie Lou Hamer Coalition, a member of the Joint Committee on Education, and the founder of North County Forever which seeks to eliminate poverty in the St. Louis region. As a resident of Ferguson, Missouri, Representative Curtis has been a vocal figure during the unrest over the killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown. Mr. Curtis’ initiatives and legislation are aimed at protecting youth at risk and salvaging communities that were undone by recent economic downturns. Mark Cusack State Representative Braintree, Massachusetts State Representative Mark Cusack has been serving in the Massachusetts House of Representatives since 2011. He is a graduate of Braintree public schools. He also attended the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and the National University of Ireland, Galway. Shamaine Daniels City Councilperson Harrisburg, Pennsylvania YEO National Convening | 2015 51 Shamaine Daniels is an immigration attorney in Harrisburg, PA. Prior to opening her own practice she served low-income Pennsylvanians in classaction suits to remedy minimum wage and overtime violations, represented tenants in uninhabitable housing, and challenged the Commonwealth’s special education funding formula which had an adverse effect on lowincome Pennsylvanians with disabilities. Daniels is best known for her work as plaintiff’s counsel in Lozano et. al. v. City of Hazleton. She is the president of the Harrisburg Area National Organization for Women (NOW) and chair of the Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition. She graduated with a B.A. in political science from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. in women’s studies from the University of Cincinnati, and a J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. Daniels is the first immigrant to be elected to Harrisburg’s city council.