Ryan Poe-Gavlinski is a 2004 graduate of Quinnipiac University School of Law and serves as the Director of the Economic Justice Institute (EJI), Director of the Restraining Order and Survivor Advocacy Clinic (ROSA), and Director of the Lawyering Skills Course at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Ryan also teaches Evidence.

Originally from Southern California, Ryan is licensed to practice law in Connecticut, California, West Virginia, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Prior to joining UW Law School, she served with the Indiana Department of Child Services, worked as a staff attorney with Legal Aid of West Virginia, and practiced as an Assistant Public Defender with the Law Offices of the Public Defender for Riverside County, California. Her legal career has focused on poverty law, criminal defense for both juveniles and adults, family law, child welfare law, and advocacy for survivors of intimate partner violence and other civil legal matters.

Under Ryan's leadership, the Restraining Order and Survivor Advocacy Clinic, formerly known as the VOCA Restraining Order Clinic, received the Wisconsin State Bar Innovator of the Year Award in 2019. She was also recognized with a 2020 Crime Victim Service Award Honorable Mention for Outstanding Victim Advocacy from the Wisconsin Victim/Witness Professional Association. In 2023, the clinic was honored with the Outstanding Victim Advocacy Award by a Business Organization. Most recently, Ryan received the University of Wisconsin Law School's 2025 Clinical Teacher of the Year Award.

In addition to her teaching and clinical leadership roles, Ryan serves as a Guardian ad Litem in Dane County and is actively involved in leadership and service within the legal profession. She is a graduate of the State Bar of Wisconsin's G. Lane Ware Leadership Academy, serves as Co-Chair of the Leadership Academy Planning Committee, and is a member of the State Bar's Leadership Development Committee. Ryan currently serves as Chair of the UW Law School's Student Success/Inclusive Excellence Committee and is a member of the James E. Doyle Chapter of the Inns of Court, where she serves on the program planning committee.

Ryan's professional service extends to appointments by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. In 2022, she was appointed as a Special Investigator for the Office of Lawyer Regulation, a role she continues to hold. In 2026, the Supreme Court appointed her to the Wisconsin Board of Bar Examiners for a three-year term. She also serves on the State Bar of Wisconsin Board of Governors, representing District 9 (Dane County).

Through her teaching, advocacy, and leadership, Ryan remains deeply committed to expanding access to justice, supporting survivors, and mentoring the next generation of lawyers.