Actress holds a Masters in Social Work from the University of Chicago and a Masters in Sociology from DePaul University. Actress has volunteered with the Midwest Region since interning in 2006 as a graduate student. She previously worked on capital defense teams as a mitigation specialist on state and federal cases in Illinois and Michigan. Her experiences in the criminal justice system led to certification in school social work and the usage of a restorative justice approach to create youth prevention and intervention programs. Actress is a former member of the Board Program Committee.