Mary Scott-Boria is a lifelong resident of Chicago, arriving to Chicago at 15 from Battle Creek Michigan. Mary has over 50 years of experience and knowledge of Chicago’s communities, having worked as a professional social worker and human services administrator for several non-profit organizations. Her work and interests have been in women and youth issues and in community organizing and politics. She served as the founding executive director of the Chicago Sexual Assault Services Network, director of Youth Services Project (YSP),  a founding executive member of the Cook County Democratic Women, and most recently as director of the Urban Studies Program of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest.   As director of Women’s Services for the Metropolitan YWCA, she became interested in global issues of violence against women and visited women’s anti-violence projects in Ghana and South Africa. She was also active in anti-apartheid organizing and visited South Africa soon after the release of Nelson Mandela. Her involvement with the Christian Peacemaker Teams afforded her the opportunity to travel and lead a delegation of activists to Palestine. Her background in anti-racism education and organizing has kept her involved in issues of racial justice since the late 60s.  Mary has an MSW from University of Illinois and completed her Master of Divinity degree from the McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. She serves on the pastoral team at the First Church of the Brethren in Chicago’s East Garfield Park where she’s been a member since 1968.  served on the training team of the Christian Peacemakers Teams and She was most recently active with the Mikva Challenge Foundation and CLAIM (Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers). Mary currently lives in Oak Park with her spouse Rafael and is the proud mother of five, grandmother to 9 and great grandmother to 3.