Lori Baker, Senior Education and Sentencing Practice Specialist in the Office of Education and Sentencing Practice, joined the staff of the U.S. Sentencing Commission in 2020. She previously worked as a U.S. Probation Officer in the Middle District of Pennsylvania for over 20 years, including time spent as both a Sentencing Guideline Specialist and Supervisor. Although the majority of her career focused on the preparation of presentence investigation reports, her experience also includes pretrial services and post-conviction.

Lori enjoys working with those who are newer to federal sentencing including U.S. Probation Officers attending the Initial Probation and Pretrial Training Academy in Charleston, South Carolina. She uses her own experiences to identify concepts which are easily misunderstood and focuses her training efforts on these topics. Lori is particularly passionate about teaching the proper application of guidelines pertaining to sex offenses.

Lori holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Administration of Justice from the Pennsylvania State University and a Master of Science degree in Administration of Justice from Shippensburg University.

Jessica Collins, Senior Attorney in the Office of Education and Sentencing Practice, joined the U.S. Sentencing Commission in 2023. Before coming to the Commission, Jessica was an Assistant U.S. Attorney with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, where she served as the Deputy Chief of the Southern Division. Jessica was also a Trial Attorney with the Fraud Section, Criminal Division, of the U.S. Department of Justice and worked as an attorney in private practice. Since coming to the Commission, Jessica has trained thousands of practitioners on the Sentencing Guidelines and served as the chair of a policy team on Firearms.

Jessica received her undergraduate degree from Tulane University. She graduated magna cum laude from New York University School of Law. Following law school, Jessica served as a law clerk to the Honorable Henry F. Floyd of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, as well as to the Honorable J. Frederick Motz and Honorable Catherine B. Blake of the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

Dr. Joseph DiPietro is the Training and Education Program Manager for the Office of Education and Sentencing Practice at the U.S. Sentencing Commission, where he has served since 2018. With over 20 years of experience in education and training, he is a dedicated expert in designing, delivering, and evaluating learning experiences across federal, private sector, postsecondary, and public education settings.

Dr. DiPietro specializes in creating high-quality online, blended, and face-to-face learning environments. His expertise includes optimizing technology-mediated course structures, ensuring alignment with national and federal accreditation standards, and enhancing the comprehensibility of complex educational content. Since 2004, he has facilitated technology-integrated professional development and began teaching online courses in 2006.

A former public-school teacher, instructional designer, and university professor, Joe holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Education from the University of Florida and a Ph.D. in Education, focusing on Learning Technologies Design Research, from George Mason University. His passion for educational technology continues to drive his work in advancing innovative learning solutions.

Alan Dorhoffer is the Director of the Office of Education and Sentencing Practice and has worked at the Commission for close to 30 years. He has conducted hundreds of training programs for judges, attorneys, law clerks, probation officers, and federal bar associations on federal sentencing. Alan has also conducted numerous webcasts and broadcasts on the Federal Judicial Training Network (FJTN). During his time at the Commission, Alan has chaired policy teams on Sex Offenses, Criminal History, and Firearms, and been a member of several other teams. Alan specializes in analyzing Supreme Court and appellate court decisions interpreting the federal sentencing issues, and in presenting complex legal concepts in terms guideline users can readily understand.

Alan has been an Adjunct Professor at the George Mason School of Law, and was law clerk to the Honorable Edmund A. Sargus, U.S. District Judge, Southern District of Ohio, in Columbus. Alan is a graduate of Binghamton University and the George Washington University School of Law.