Vera House — a nonprofit that prevents, responds to, and partners to end domestic and sexual violence and other forms of abuse — has announced five new staff appointments. The new hires include two executive leaders, a director of shelter services, volunteer coordinator, and Prison Rape Elimination Act project coordinator.

NILIEKA BROWN has joined Vera House as Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) project coordinator. Prior to joining Vera House, she was a community service officer with a local police department for seven years. Brown also served as a volunteer with Vera House’s web-chat service. With her hire, Vera House is now one of only nine New York state domestic and sexual violence agencies to offer specialized services to people who are incarcerated with the goal of eliminating prison rape and sexual assault. Brown also provides services for individuals incarcerated who have experienced childhood or adult sexual assault in the community. Brown received her bachelor of technology degree in criminal justice from SUNY Morrisville.

CYNTHIA GRIFFIN-HARRIS has joined Vera House as director of shelter services. She has 20 years of experience with community and human service delivery in Syracuse and the surrounding areas. Before joining Vera House, she served as a human-services case manager at Excellus BlueCross BlueShield and also previously served on the Vera House board of directors for four years. Griffin-Harris is an active member of Mothers Against Gun Violence (MAGV) and volunteers at New Direction Christian Center, where she facilitates an addiction and substance abuse group.

NICOLE JOAO has joined Vera House as chief financial officer and a member of the executive leadership team. Previously, she served as an auditor for a mid-sized accounting firm, where she specialized in nonprofits. Joao’s past experiences also include roles at EY and Live Nation Entertainment. She speaks five languages. Joao received her bachelor’s in accounting from Penn State University and MBA from Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi.

MARIANA PANIAGUA has joined Vera House as volunteer coordinator. She is responsible for recruiting, engaging, and placing volunteers throughout the agency. Previously, Paniagua served as a team leader at Students for Justice, where she recruited and trained volunteers to help fight voter suppression against people of color. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, she also worked in the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico with the Commission of Legislative Funds for Community Impact and is bilingual. Paniagua received her bachelor’s degree in political science from Le Moyne College and is currently pursuing a master’s degree of public administration at Lynn University.

VIRGIE TOWNSEND has joined Vera House as director of marketing and communications and a member of the executive leadership team. She has more than 10 years of experience in corporate and nonprofit communications, including her prior role as a senior digital content specialist at Terakeet. As a writer, Townsend’s work has been featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, Harper’s Bazaar, VICE, and other publications. In 2020, Townsend served as secretary of the Vera House board of directors and chair of its board development committee. She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University and her J.D. from the Syracuse University College of Law.