Amy Dallas is a Program Director at the CUNY Institute for State & Local Governance managing training and technical assistance portfolios spanning restorative justice, resource provision and engagement across justice and health systems, clinical and community-based care, and best practices for advancing public health and safety outcomes. In this role she also drives strategic planning and development while working closely with a wide range of governmental, policy, research, nonprofit and community partners.

Starting her career as an attorney at the Legal Aid Society Criminal Defense Practice in Brooklyn, Amy spent a decade advocating for people as they navigated entanglement with the legal system. She brought this perspective to her more recent role at the Vera Institute of Justice, where she worked with elected prosecutors and community-based organizations to implement more equitable, data-driven policies and programs. She also designed and led the Collaborative Justice Network, a national learning community connecting justice reform partners to cross-pollinate ideas and sustain momentum across the field. Amy serves as Treasurer of the National Association of Community and Restorative Justice (NACRJ), and advises several nonprofits focused on reentry, conditions of confinement, and youth justice. She is the author of In Right Relationship: Practicing and Teaching Trauma-Responsive Restorative Advocacy, a legal journal article on a practice framework for system professionals that blends trauma education with somatic, contemplative, and restorative practices.

Amy holds a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law, a B.S. in Criminology from Eastern Michigan University, served in the Peace Corps, and is a certified somatic practitioner. She comes from a family of Soviet immigrants, loves to dance and be outdoors, and is a proud parent of two amazing kids.