J. Soffiyah Elijah
The Board of Directors of the Correctional Association of New York is pleased to announce the appointment of J. Soffiyah Elijah as the Association’s new executive director.
An accomplished advocate, scholar and educator, Elijah brings decades of experience addressing the urgent needs of the marginalized, silenced and indigent people in the criminal and juvenile justice systems. “I am deeply honored by the opportunity to lead this vitally important organization with such a rich and accomplished history,” says Elijah, who will serve as the Association’s first African American executive director.
Elijah comes to the Correctional Association from the Criminal Justice Institute at Harvard Law School, where she has been a clinical instructor for the past 11 years and the deputy director for the past eight years. Before moving to Harvard, she was a member of the faculty and director and supervising attorney of the Defender Clinic at the City University of New York School of Law.
“Ms. Elijah has dedicated her life to public service and addressing the ills and inequities in the criminal justice system,” says Harvard Law Professor Charles J. Ogletree Jr.
