Human Rights Campaign and Human Rights Campaign Foundation Welcome New LGBTQ+ Champions to Their Boards of Directors

Julie Anderton
Steering Committee – Chicago
HRC Board of Directors
She/Her

Julie's first leadership role in this movement was as president of the Edinboro Gay Organization in 1991, as an undergraduate in rural Pennsylvania. She found her way to HRC in Indiana in 2005 and walked away with the best friends of her life, serving on the membership, diversity, political, volunteer, and communications committees, joining the Board of Governors, and serving as vice-chair of Indiana Equality. That set the pattern for everything since: show up, do the work, and bring people with you.

She relocated to Chicago in 2012, rejoined HRC on the Chicago Steering Committee in 2015, and joined the Board of Governors in 2016. She has served as Membership Outreach co-chair, Board Liaison for Federal Club, and Silent Auction co-chair for the Chicago Dinner, and later as Board Development co- chair on the National Executive Committee. Today she serves as Chair of the National Board of Governors, where her focus is leadership development, the volunteer experience, and building a pipeline of governors ready to lead — because people don't stay for the work, they stay for each other. 

Julie has spent her entire career in software engineering. She has been with Salesforce since 2012 and a Lead Engineer there since 2016, and is active in Outforce, the company's LGBTQ+ employee resource group. Originally from Pennsylvania by way of Indiana, she holds a BS in Business Administration from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She moved to Chicago to be near her sister Rose and to become the "best aunt ever" to her four niecephews, and shares her home with her dog, Georgie.

Karine Jean-Pierre
At Large - Greater Washington, D.C.
HRC Board of Directors 
She/Her

Karine Jean-Pierre formerly served as White House Press Secretary  – a role in which she was the first Black person, the first openly queer person, and the longest-tenured woman to serve. She also served as Senior Advisor to President Joe Biden. 

Born in Martinique and raised in New York by Haitian immigrant parents, Jean-Pierre began her career in local government as the director of legislative and budget affairs and deputy chief of staff for a pair of New York City councilmembers before transitioning into national politics as an advocate for greater corporate accountability at the Center for Community and Corporate Ethics.

In 2008, Jean-Pierre joined the presidential campaign for then-Senator Barack Obama and later joined the Obama-Biden administration in the Office of Political Affairs. She also served as the deputy director for Battleground States on the 2012 reelection campaign. She has held roles on many high-profile campaigns, including as campaign manager for Letitia James' successful run for New York City Public Advocate, senior advisor to President Biden’s 2020 campaign, and chief of staff to Biden’s then–running mate, Senator Kamala Harris.

Outside of her direct political involvements, Jean-Pierre has shared her expertise on democracy, social justice, and public policy as a political analyst for NBC and MSNBC, as Chief Public Affairs Officer at MoveOn, and as an adjunct professor at Columbia SIPA, where she earned her Master of Public Administration. She was named a Pritzker Fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics in 2019, honored with the MLK Day Visionary Award in 2020, and bestowed the Phoenix Award in 2023. She is also the author of the memoir Moving Forward: A Story of Hope, Hard Work, and the Promise of America, and Independent.

Marcus McElroy
At Large - Chicago
HRC Board of Directors 
He/Him

A native of Sheffield, Alabama, Marcus O. McElroy is a change management leader with a career built on solving hard problems for large, complex organizations. He has evaluated launch trajectories as a rocket scientist at NASA and drove global partner strategy for a large technology company, bringing the same clarity and precision to both.

Over two decades, Marcus has worked across aerospace, retail, telecom, and technology, in roles spanning engineering, strategy, finance, IT, sourcing, and program management. He unlocked $150 million in pipeline growth for a Fortune 50 sales organization through AI enabled tools and led the PMO for a $2 billion divestiture that spun off a new global managed infrastructure services provider. Across every role, he asks sharp questions, connects ideas others overlook, and helps teams turn complex goals into lasting outcomes. 

Marcus has been an HRC volunteer since 1998, serving on steering committees in the Twin Cities, Chicago, and Seattle — most recently as Federal Club Co-Chair in Seattle, and now in Chicago. He has been a member of the Federal Club Council for the past ten years. His civic commitment extends beyond HRC: he served on the board of the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL) in Virginia in the mid-1990s, has mentored as a Big Brother with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound for over ten years, and volunteers his time and resources encouraging young people to pursue careers in science and technology. As a student at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, he co-chaired the Gay & Lesbian Management Association and served on the Admissions Council. 

An avid traveler, Marcus has visited six continents, 42 countries, all 50 U.S. states, and 8 Canadian provinces. He is working toward becoming a polyglot, currently studying Portuguese alongside German, Spanish, and French — and can already say “thank you” in 45 languages.

Chunkit Fung
At Large – Rochester, NY
HRC Foundation Board of Directors 
He/Him
 

Originally from Hong Kong, Chunkit immigrated to the United States in 1991 and now lives in Rochester, New York with his husband, Scott. Chunkit attended Cornell University, where he earned a B.S. in Biology and subsequently, his M.S. in Clinical Epidemiology and M.D. from University of Pennsylvania. Chunkit is an academic medical oncologist specializing in genitourinary oncology with research interests in cancer survivorship and professional experience in community engagement and wellbeing.

He is also Vice Chair for Community Engagement, Health Improvement, and Wellbeing for the Department of Medicine at University of Rochester. Chunkit has served on the HRC Board of Governors (BOG) since 2021 and as Federal Club Co-Chair on the HRC BOG Executive Committee in 2025 and 2026. During that time, Chunkit worked with the HRC Leadership Giving Team to ensure critical funds were raised for HRC strategic initiatives. He inspired many others to join HRC by sharing his personal stories of how HRC positively impacted our communities at various events, including the HRC National Dinner. He also served as one of the panelists on the “Leveraging Personal Power for Change” session at the HRC Convening For Change Event in Palm Springs in 2025. 

Chunkit is a graduate of the inaugural class of the HRC BIPOC leadership institute and one of the inaugural founders of the HRC AANHPI and Proud group. In 2023, he was one of the speakers, sharing how his intersectional identities inspired him to volunteer with HRC at the Celebrate Pride Month event in NYC, co-hosted by HRC and the Asia Society. 

In addition to his volunteer work with HRC, Chunkit is currently a member of the American Medical Association (AMA) LGBTQ+ section, which addresses issues of interest to LGBTQ+ trainees, physicians, patients, and straight allies. Chunkit has also served as one of the inaugural co-chairs of the American Society Clinical Oncology (ASCO) LGBTQ+ Community of Practice from 2023 to 2025. In this role, he organized an annual two-hour session at the annual ASCO meeting in Chicago, where oncology health care providers, health care leadership and community members gathered to discuss national research and clinical collaboration opportunities to advance care of LGBTQ+ patients with cancer. 

Chunkit is deeply committed to protecting our democracy, advancing LGBTQ+ inclusive practices and policies, and changing hearts and minds of how Americans understand the LGBTQ+ communities.

Ryan Roche
Steering Committee – Atlanta
HRC Foundation Board of Directors 
He/Him

Ryan Roche is Managing Senior Director of Development for Campus Life, Athletics, and Parent Advancement at Emory University, where he leads fundraising strategy, philanthropic partnerships, and donor engagement initiatives that support student success and strengthen the university community. Ryan has nearly two decades of experience in higher education and nonprofit advancement specializing in major gifts, volunteer engagement, strategic planning, and organizational leadership.

A longtime advocate for LGBTQ+ equality, Ryan has dedicated more than a decade to volunteer leadership in Atlanta's LGBTQ+ community. He served on the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Pride Committee from 2012-2018, helping guide one of the Southeast's largest Pride organizations during a period of significant growth and community engagement. He also served on the Human Rights Campaign's National Board of Governors from 2018-2024, during which he served on the executive committee as co-chair of the Board Development Committee and tri-chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

As both a development professional and volunteer leader, Ryan is passionate about connecting people with opportunities to create lasting impact. He has spent much of the last decade helping individuals align their values with meaningful philanthropic investments and believes strongly in the power of advocacy, community engagement, and collective action to advance equality. 

Ryan, a native of Atlanta, GA, is a graduate of Emory University, has a Master of Public Administration from the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, and is a Certified Fund Raising Executive.

Andrew Walsh-Bare
Steering Committee – New England
HRC Foundation Board of Directors 
He/Him

Andrew Walsh-Bare is a technology sales and client experience professional who is passionate about bringing people together, building inclusive spaces, and creating meaningful impact. He currently works at Tyler Technologies, Inc., where he has built a career anchored in client relationship building, public sector technology implementation, and sales leadership. Throughout his tenure, Andrew has been a strong advocate for change, driving a company-wide approach to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, helping pave the way for the formation of six new ERGs. He was a founder of the inaugural LGBTQ+ Network ERG and currently serves as its co-chair.

Andrew’s commitment to community extends beyond his professional career. He joined the Greater Cincinnati HRC Steering Committee in 2018 and has served on the Human Rights Campaign’s National Board of Governors since 2020. During his time with HRC, he has held leadership positions in Volunteer Engagement, Political Action, Community Engagement, Workplace Equality, and Federal Club. In 2026, he joined the Executive Committee of the National Board of Governors as Federal Club Co-Chair, where he has helped foster a Leadership Giving mindset across the Governor team, ensuring that pathways to recurring support for HRC’s work are available at all levels. 

His sustained passion for LGBTQ+ advocacy has been demonstrated through his past service on the boards of Cincinnati Pride and Love Must Win. In addition to his advocacy work, Andrew has held several national leadership positions with the international business fraternity Delta Sigma Pi, where he has found additional opportunities to mentor others and help build a more inclusive culture. 

Andrew holds an MBA from Xavier University’s Williams College of Business and maintains professional certifications in Six Sigma and AWS Cloud. He now calls Kennebunk, Maine, home, where he lives with his husband, Timothy Walsh-Bare, and their Great Dane, Scooby. When they aren’t enjoying the beauty of Maine, Andrew and Timothy love to travel, experience new places and cultures, and seek out new adventures together. Their shared curiosity has taken them to destinations around the world, with plenty more still on their list to explore.

Carol Ebersole-Weiss
Steering Committee – Western & Central NY
HRC Foundation Board of Directors 
She/Her

Carol’s “career” with HRC began on Long Island in late 2009 when she met Patty Ellis at a local LGBT awards event. Within weeks, she and her wife, Dana, were in Patty’s living room as part of the HRC LI Political Action Committee. During Carol’s 3 years with the LI group, she worked on the PAC, Events, and Federal Club Committees. In 2012, when Carol announced her move to Western NY and resignation from the LI-based group, Patty said “that’s still part of NY – would you be willing to create an HRC presence there?” Never one to shy away from a challenge and because of her love for HRC, Carol said sure!

With no connections and never having been in Western or Central NY, Carol and Dana set about learning the community and making friends by getting involved in existing LGBTQ+ organizations such as Out & Equal NY Finger Lakes Chapter, serving on its Council til it dissolved in March 2017; The Gay Alliance of Genesee Valley – Rochester’s LGBTQ Community Center – volunteering and speaking at several programs over the years; ImageOut, the Rochester area Gay & Lesbian film festival, serving on both the special events and ticket sales committees and securing Community Partner status for HRC, earning HRC a festival guide feature and pre-film speaking opportunity; and, The Landmark Society of Western NY as a Community Partner in orchestrating LGBTQ+ historical walking tours in Rochester.

Carol not only met Patty’s challenge of bringing HRC to WCNY, but in 2018 launched the WCNY Dinner, attracting 500 guests and new donors, followed in 2021 with WCNY becoming its own Steering Committee, the first in many years. She has worked hard to make HRC mean more than just a bumper sticker that everyone recognizes. The continued success of the WCNY Annual Dinner, Federal Club/Council recruitment, and PACE fundraising and activities resulted in Western & Central NY earning Steering Committee of the Year for FY26.

Carol has worked in the Compensation area of Human Resources for over 25 years. She develops job descriptions, conducts market pricing to ensure competitive salaries, creates and administers employee incentive plans, and reviews salary offers for new hires and increases for incumbents. She interacts with all levels within the company, from mail clerks to the CEO. Some of Carol’s strong suits are her ability to build relationships and diffuse difficult situations.

Outside of her full-time paying job and HRC (full-time volunteer job), Carol and Dana enjoy supporting the arts and live performances, attending women’s professional basketball and tennis matches, and spending time with friends and being active within the community. Their biggest joy, however, comes from their fur baby, Justice, whose name was chosen on their drive home from the rescue, when the announcement came over the radio that Biden and Harris had won the 2020 election.