Rachel joined the School Justice Project as a Senior Staff Attorney in the fall of 2023. Before joining SJP, Rachel spent four years defending both young people and adults charged with crimes at the Public Defender Service of Washington D.C. (PDS) and Brooklyn Defender Services (BDS). While in law school, Rachel represented clients facing misdemeanor charges at CUNY's Criminal Defense Clinic, and prepared a petition for Executive Clemency on behalf of an individual serving a life sentence, which was ultimately granted by Governor Cuomo in January 2019.

Rachel also interned with the Criminal Defense Practice at The Bronx Defenders, advocated on behalf of detained clients at Rikers Island with the Prisoner’s Rights Project at the Legal Aid Society, and supported folks as they prepared for upcoming parole hearings as an advocate with the Parole Preparation Project.

Prior to law school, Rachel worked for the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ), where she developed advocacy campaigns calling for state accountability and reparations in the aftermath of mass violence. Rachel also supported a truth-seeking initiative in Ferguson, MO, which sought to expose and eliminate state-sponsored racial violence. These experiences led her to law school to fight mass incarceration and to reimagine systems for community safety. Rachel is a graduate of the George Washington University, and completed a Masters degree in Political Studies from the University of Cape Town in South Africa. Rachel received her J.D. from the City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law.

Rachel is an attorney admitted to practice in the District of Columbia. Rachel can be reached at: rgoodman@sjpdc.org.