Office phone: 617-722-1578

E-mail: patricia.jehlen@state.ma.us

Mail:
Senator Patricia Jehlen
Room 513
State House
Boston 02133

Staff:

Robert FitzPatrick, Chief of Staff

Chief of Staff and General Counsel Bob FitzPatrick first came to work in the State House in 2001.  Bob worked for two members of the House of Representatives while attending Suffolk Law School at night.  Bob was admitted to the Bar in 2006 and came to work for Senator Jehlen in January of 2008 where he manages the staff and works on infrastructure and development issues in Medford, Winchester, Somerville and Woburn.

Bob says that the best part of his job is his staff.  “Being Chief of Staff is easy when you have an exceptional staff.”  Bob lives in the Fulton Heights neighborhood of Medford with his wife Ellen.

Victoria Halal, Committee Director

As Elder Affairs Committee Director, Vicki assists Senator Jehlen with managing legislation that comes before the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, coordinating informational events for seniors in the district, meeting with advocates on elder issues, and keeping up to date with topics of concern to the growing demographic of citizens over 60.

Vicki is a graduate of Boston University (BA in Literature) and the University of Massachusetts Boston (MA in Applied Linguistics) and has had a career in teaching at UMass Boston as well as SCALE in Somerville.  She lives in Medford with her husband, Don Walker, and their two children.

 Administrative Director

June is the cheerful voice on the phone and the smiling face that greets visitors to the State House Office.  She worked with Senator Jehlen in the House of Representatives and followed Senator Jehlen to the Senate, totaling more than 12 years working with the Senator.

Prior to June’s service for the Massachusetts General Court, she worked for many years at Tufts University as Assistant Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity.

June is a lifelong resident of Somerville, although her home brushes up against Medford.  She is a graduate of Boston University (BS in Business Administration) and did graduate work at Tufts University.  She has two sons, a daughter, a son-in-law, and two beautiful granddaughters.  She is a trustee of the Somerville Public Library, President of the Duhamel Education Initiative, and an active member of POWERtalk International where she has presented workshops on leadership and communication skills at their regional conferences and international conventions.

Lauren Sacco, Director of Constituent Services and Governmental Affairs

Lauren Sacco has worked on Senator Jehlen’s staff since the Senator’s first term in the State Senate three years ago.  Lauren advocates for constituents on issues such as benefits, health care, utilities, housing, employment, corrections and beyond.  She also works on legislation in the areas of corrections, disabilities, and animal welfare.

Lauren also worked on constituent cases in the Boston office of United States Senator Edward M. Kennedy as part of her Masters of Public Administration coursework at Suffolk University.  Lauren graduated from Bradford College and holds a post-graduate certificate from Clark University.

Lauren says her greatest educational experience was working as an Intake Paralegal at the Disability Law Center.  She considers herself a legal services “alumna”.  Her work at DLC, provided hands-on experience in housing, special education, voting access, mental health, benefits, disability law, and more.  Her experience at DLC was formative and invaluable in her work in the State Senate.   Prior to her work at the Disability Law Center, Lauren worked with people with psychiatric disabilities living in the community for the Edinburgh Center and as a Human Rights Officer and Vocational Counselor at the Community Health and Alternative Opportunities Services, Inc.

Lauren grew up in Winchester and Medford. 

Alayna Van Tassel, Budget and Policy Director. 

Alayna is responsible for overseeing Senator Jehlen’s legislative and budget priorities and directs the legislative strategy. She is responsible for drafting, analyzing and tracking all policy and budgetary matters.  Alayna is a State House veteran having worked in the Legislature in numerous offices . She most recently served as the Budget and Policy Advisor for Senator Jim Marzilli and Staff Director for Representative Alice Wolf. She was also a legislative aide to Representatives Alice Peisch and Shaun Kelly.  While pursuing her Master’s degree, Alayna was a public policy fellow at Population Connection where she researched reproductive rights and women’s health issues.  She has also worked in the Government Relations Office at Georgetown University Hospital.  Alayna is a graduate of Suffolk University and received her Master’s degree in Public Policy with a focus in gender policy from The George Washington University.