Dr. Mark Ellis Appointed as New Chair of the CEELI Institute’s Management Board

We are delighted to announce that Dr. Mark Ellis was appointed as the new Chair of the CEELI Institute Management Board at our 2022 board meeting on May 14. Dr. Ellis brings a wealth of experience and institutional knowledge to the position. As executive director of the International Bar Association (IBA), he leads the foremost international organization of bar associations, law firms, and individual lawyers in the world. Prior to joining the IBA, he spent ten years as the first executive director of the original CEELI project, which was then an initiative of the American Bar Association (ABA).

“It was wonderful to be back in person at the CEELI Institute and be reminded of the remarkable work achieved over the past twenty years. It is a great honor for me to be able to carry on the work of the Institute’s founder, Homer Moyer, and to carry forward his legacy and vision for the Institute. I hope my own long involvement with the Institute will serve me well as I undertake these new responsibilities.”

In his new role, Dr. Ellis will work closely with two new vice chairs, Maryann Clifford and Susan Ringler, who have been instrumental in developing the CEELI Institute for the better part of the last decade.

Ms. Ringler recently recalled her early years working for the ABA/CEELI project.

“In 1998, Mark Ellis, then the executive director of ABA/CEELI, hired me to be a CEELI liaison in Russia. With that, I decided to leave the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland after 14 years to have the adventure of a lifetime working with lawyers, judges, prosecutors, and civil society in Russia as the country considered a different future.”

She was also witness to the Institute’s growth over the years, remembering how the Villa Grébovka evolved from an empty building to the home of a premier training institute offering education and convening opportunities to legal professionals and communities worldwide.

Ms. Clifford is the former Group Ethics & Compliance Officer at BP. She retired from BP in March 2016 after serving four years in that role, overseeing the company's ethics and compliance program, including BP's code of conduct, the employee concerns program, and programs to drive speak-up and ethical leadership. She was introduced to the CEELI Institute by Homer Moyer, and quickly got involved before becoming chair of the Development Committee two years ago.

"The people I have met and the programs and outcomes I have witnessed and participated in since becoming engaged with the CEELI Institute have been gratifying. CEELI is making a difference. Now [in this new role of vice chair], I will have the opportunity to work with two of the most seasoned rule of law veterans - as Board vice chair with Sue Ringler and under the leadership of Mark Ellis. I am excited by the opportunities and challenges this new role will present."