Disability Rights Louisiana (DRLA) is thrilled to announce that we have taken a major step forward in our mission to protect, advocate for, and empower people with disabilities by hiring Ranie Thompson as our next Executive Director! Ranie has dedicated her life to protecting the rights of marginalized and vulnerable communities, working as a social justice attorney for over 25 years. Her faith informs her work, which she considers her mission and her purpose.
Ranie is a 1993 graduate of Jackson State University (B.A. Political Science). She holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Iowa College of Law (1996) and a Master of Business Administration from Southeastern Louisiana University (2023). She’s a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and serves in various capacities working with community groups and bar associations.
“I am deeply honored to serve as the next Executive Director of DRLA, and to bring my experience, expertise, and passion for serving marginalized and vulnerable communities to lead the organization.
“Together with an incredibly talented team, we will build upon a 47-year legacy of protection and advocacy for the rights of people with disabilities statewide. This is an exciting time for DRLA and I’m excited to be a part of the organization’s future.”
Since 2015, Ranie has served as the Director of Legal Services at CrescentCare Health, a federally qualified health center in New Orleans. In this role, she supervises a team of attorneys who use the law to holistically address the social determinants of health of persons living with HIV throughout the state of Louisiana. In 2021, she was an honoree and nominated as one of City Business of New Orleans’ 2021 Women of the Year for her work and service to the community. In 2023, her work at CrescentCare was highlighted by the National Center for Medical Legal Partnerships.
Prior to joining CrescentCare, Ranie returned home in 2006 to work alongside her community recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. She worked as an Equal Justice Works Katrina Legal Fellow at Southeast Louisiana Legal Services until 2015. While there, she championed the rights of Louisianians to recover from disasters with dignity and fight against systemic inequities to protect the assets of Louisianians. This included foreclosure defense, challenging FEMA recoupment claims, and protecting the income of her clients by teaching them about money management, credit repair and consumer debt defense.
Ranie served as a member of the American Bar Association’s Special Committee on Disaster Response and Preparedness, and has trained attorneys, law students, and advocates for social justice–both locally and around the country–on disaster related issues, foreclosure defense litigation, mortgage and foreclosure rescue fraud and scams, diversity and inclusion in the profession, and various general financial awareness topics. She has also served as a trainer and panelist with various groups, including the LSBA Access to Justice Committee, the Shriver Center National Center of Poverty Law, and the American Bar Association, on various subjects.
DRLA Board President, Patsy White, elaborates, “We are remarkably fortunate that Ranie Thompson will bring her experience and shared values to DRLA, as we begin this new chapter in our organization’s history. We could not be more excited to see the devotion and commitment to our mission that Ranie has shown throughout her career, and look forward to a very bright future for DRLA under her leadership.”
Ms. Thompson will begin her new role on March 18th, taking over for Interim Executive Director, Tara Huffman, who will continue to aid with this transition. We thank Ms. Huffman for her valued service, as well as her work to ensure the evolution of our organization as we begin under new leadership. We wish her the best in all of her future endeavors!
We wish Ranie Thompson a very warm welcome as our new Executive Director, and look forward to this new chapter under her leadership in our fight to protect, empower, and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities in 2024 and beyond!
For inquiries, contact Assistant Director of Communications and Outreach, Kevin Hurstell: khurstell@disabilityrightsla.org, 504-717-2768
