Board of Directors

Edwin is the Vice President of Public Affairs at NewPublica LLC, with nearly a decade of electoral campaign experience at local, state, and national levels. As a queer DACA recipient and Latino immigrant, his unique background fuels his innovative thinking and community-focused solutions. Known for building authentic relationships and alliances, Edwin has driven historic victories, serving as a key member of the leadership teams behind successful campaigns for prominent Minnesota figures like Governor Tim Walz, Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan, US Senator Tina Smith, and US Senator Amy Klobuchar. Edwin brings public, nonprofit, and private sector experiences with an organizer mindset. Edwin remains deeply engaged in his community. In addition to serving on COPAL’s Board of Directors, he is the youngest and the only DACA recipient on the Board of Trustees for the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. Edwin is married to his husband, Ricardo, a Saint Paul native and public schools administrator, and they both live in the western suburbs with their two Shih Tzus, Mochi and Snoopy.

Kathy Santamaria Mendez is an Associate Attorney at Wilson Law Group, where she handles a variety of immigration cases before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), and the National Visa Center (NVC). Born in El Salvador to Salvadoran and Honduran parents, Kathy has firsthand experience with the complexities of the immigration system. She brings both her legal expertise and personal journey as an immigrant and the child of first-generation immigrants to her advocacy, striving to be a fierce and compassionate champion for her clients. Kathy’s deep connection to Minnesota’s diverse communities, shaped by internships, volunteer work, and her own lived experiences, has given her a profound understanding of the multifaceted challenges immigrants face. Beyond legal status, she recognizes how economic, health, environmental, and emotional factors impact her clients’ lives. She is dedicated to not only securing legal protection for her clients but also ensuring they are equipped with the resources, education, and community support needed to build a thriving life. She works tirelessly to help them lay a strong foundation for success, creating opportunities for a prosperous future that extends across generations. This awareness drives her commitment to the work of COPAL, who strive to address these interconnected issues with the goal of creating lasting positive change.

Jessica Aliaga-Froelke is the founder and CEO of Hispanic Solutions Group. She has worked as a credit repair specialist for more than 17 years, helping thousands of individuals and contractors both inside and outside the United States achieve their credit goals. Originally from Peru and an immigrant to the United States, she experienced firsthand the effects of intergenerational financial ignorance. After getting ahead, she set out to educate and help other financially excluded minorities to achieve financial capacities and their own financial goals. Jessica is also an advocate for credit and consumer rights in the United States. With the motto “An educated community is a strengthened community”, Jessica has been advancing important programs and agreements to promote financial education with the mission of reducing the economic gap in minority communities with weapons as simple as having a healthy credit.

Oscar A. Chacón is a Co‐Founder and Executive Director of Alianza Americas. Before stepping into his current role in 2007, Oscar served in leadership positions at the Chicago‐based Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights, the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Boston‐based Centro Presente, and several other community-based and international development organizations. Oscar has also served on multiple advisory committees to national and international processes including the Civil Society Consultation process associated with the Global Forum on Migration and Development and the World Social Forum on Migration. Oscar is a frequent national and international spokesperson on transnationalism, economic justice, the link between migration and development, migrants’ integration processes, human mobility, migration policies, racism and xenophobia, and U.S.-Latino community issues.

Peggy is actively involved in social and cultural activities with the Ecuadorian and Latin American communities in Minnesota, developing strategies to empower them. Prior to moving to Minnesota, Peggy played an active leadership role in youth movements advocating for the social, economic, political, and cultural development of underserved communities in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Peggy earned an Associate Degree in Social and Political Economy from the University Madres de Plaza Mayo, and she holds a Master’s in Food Engineering and a Doctorate degree in Food Chemistry from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Peggy currently works as the Director of Product Innovation at a major North American Dairy company, where she leads strategic technical activities and technical communication.