Director-Ombudsman

Vickie Wallen is an attorney with experience as a citizen's advocate, and has also worked extensively on state policy issues affecting families and children. Prior to her appointment, Vickie served as Governor Mike Lowry's senior policy coordinator for human services. Before joining the governor's executive policy office, Vickie worked for the Washington State Court of Appeals and on the staff of the Washington Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington, D.C., where she advocated for parents on child-care and school-related issues. Vickie is a graduate of Princeton University and received her law degree from the Washington College of Law at the American University.

Ombudsmen

Dennis Ichikawa is an attorney with extensive experience representing parents and some children in the dependency system. He also has experience training in the area of child welfare law. Prior to joining the Office of the Family and Children's Ombudsman (OFCO), Dennis worked in the dependency unit at the Society of Counsel Representing Accused Persons (SCRAP) in King County from 1983. In 1995, Dennis became the first Kellogg Foundation Fellow in Child Welfare Law, and spent a semester at the Child Advocacy Law Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School. He currently serves as co-chair of the Children's Justice Advisory Board and as a member of the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) Family Law Executive Committee. Dennis is a graduate of the University of Washington and received his law degree from the Willamette University College of Law.

Jim Handley is an attorney with extensive experience representing the best interests of children in the dependency system. Prior to joining OFCO, Jim served for about two and one-half years as the attorney guardian ad litem (GAL) for the Thurston County Superior Court, where he investigated hundreds of cases while maintaining a successful private law practice. He also served for six years as a public defender in Western Montana, where his duties included representing juvenile offenders, children in dependency proceedings, and others in guardianship proceedings. Jim is a graduate of Dartmouth College and received a Masters degree in Counseling from Montana State University and his law degree from the University of Montana School of Law.

Mary Meinig is a social worker with extensive experience working with families and victims affected by sexual abuse. Prior to joining OFCO, Mary maintained a successful clinical and consulting practice that focused on issues of victimization, family reunification and family resolution. She also worked as an associate for Northwest Treatment Associates for five years where she developed a treatment protocol for reintegrating treated sex offenders into the family. Prior to her work at Northwest Treatment Associates, Mary worked as a residential unit supervisor at the Luther Child Center in Everett. She is a graduate of Central Washington State College and received her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Washington.

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