Profiles
Meet the 2013 Interns:
Chris Poulos- I am a student in the Masters of Urban Planning and Policy program at University of Illinois at Chicago. I am a resident of Albany Park and currently work with the Soldiers Project, which is a free and confidential counseling source for post-911 veterans, service members, and their loved ones. My internship at MTO is focused on working with renters in foreclosure. This includes working with tenants directly affected by foreclosure, as well as important policy work with the Keep Chicago Renting Coalition, which is working to pass a Chicago ordinance to prevent banks from evicting tenants, who are current on their rent, in foreclosed properties. The material outcome of the internship is to use MTO’s Hotline data to create a report on MTO’s role in mitigating the impact of foreclosures on tenants.
Rocio Lugo- I was born and raised in Little Village, Chicago and graduated from Spry Community Links High School in 2012. I am serving as the Outreach Coordinator at Metropolitan Tenants Organization (MTO). I was placed here through the AmeriCorps Public Allies program. My work focuses on capacity building and volunteer recruitment for the Tenants’ Rights Hotline, which impacts renters all across the City of Chicago. My passion has always been to give back to the community, and I have found this opportunity at MTO. I look forward to starting my undergraduate studies in the fall.
