Mary Kathryn Velazquez

Mary Kathryn Velazquez is a Staff Attorney at Georgia Appleseed, where she leads the organization’s efforts in school-based behavioral health. She advocates for reforms that improve access to education for children with disabilities and mental health challenges. She plays a key role in the FAIR Project, which provides legal representation for children in disciplinary hearings and special education cases. Mary Kathryn collaborates with school districts, juvenile courts, mental health providers, and community organizations to reduce punitive measures and promote behavioral interventions in schools.

Her firsthand insight into the barriers faced by individuals with disabilities informs her approach to creating inclusive policies and advocating for systemic change. This perspective was deepened during her time as a paralegal in disability discrimination law, where she closely engaged with cases involving individuals facing discrimination and gained valuable insight into the legal barriers they encountered. 

Through her work at the Barton Child Law & Policy Clinic, Mary Kathryn contributed to child welfare policy, advocated for legislative reforms, and helped produce a nationally-recognized report on consent decrees.

Mary Kathryn holds a Juris Doctor from Emory University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Alabama.