Tag: CUNY school of law

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Celebrating the Recipients of the 2026 AALFNY Public Interest Scholarship at the Annual Summer Reception, Hosted by McDermott Will & Schulte

On Tuesday, June 30, 2026, the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) and the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) held the Annual Summer Reception. The event celebrated the recipients of the 2026 AALFNY Public Interest Scholarship. Each year, AALFNY grants Public Interest Scholarships to law students who have demonstrated a strong commitment to the Asian American community. Since 1997, AALFNY has awarded over 60 scholarships, supporting law students  and encouraging them to apply their legal education to benefit the Asian American community and to foster commitment by law students to public service. The Reception took place at McDermott Will & Schulte in their Midtown Manhattan office.

Upon arrival, attendees enjoyed a variety of hor d’oeuvres and drinks, mingling until the Reception officially started. The program began with Sylvia Chin, AALFNY President and Partner Of Counsel at White & Case LLP, delivering welcome remarks to all attendees and formally introducing AALFNY directors to the attendees. Additionally, Sylvia read NAPABA’s statement issued earlier that day about the Supreme Court decision on birthright citizenship. Sylvia then asked AABANY Executive Director Yang Chen to introduce the AABANY Board members in attendance.

The event then proceeded with the honoring and introduction of the three scholarship recipients: Julie Phan,  UC Berkeley School of Law, Class of 2028, interning with Safe Passage Project; Sarah Raterta, City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, Class of 2027, interning with the National Immigration Project (NIP); and Mikail Husain, City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, Class of 2028, interning at the New York State Office of the Attorney General, Labor Bureau. As each recipient was presented with a certificate, the honorees offered personal reflections on their journey and expressed their deep appreciation to AALFNY for providing support through these scholarships.

The program concluded with remarks from Jenna Agatep Slater, a current Labor & Employment Associate at Wilson Elser and Immediate Past President of the Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York (FALA New York), who was a past recipient of the Public Interest Scholarship. Jenna shared her personal journey to becoming a lawyer, as well as the impact of the scholarship on her life.

Later, after the Reception was over, each recipient was interviewed to discuss their personal backgrounds, their discovery of the scholarship opportunity, and their current activities. They were also asked to provide reflections on the award, share their future professional goals and offer words of advice for aspiring law students.

Julie Phan:

Growing up in a refugee community, Julie saw how daunting it was to navigate a complex legal system without support. Witnessing her family and friends struggling to bridge that gap deeply inspired Julie’s journey in pursuing immigration law and public service. Today, that goal is not only powered by an incredible village of family, friends, and mentors back home, but also the clients she meets through the programs she has been involved in while attending law school. 

With this scholarship, Julie plans to serve the immigrant community and practice cultural humility within those spaces. She currently volunteers at a variety of legal clinics, focusing on forming true connections with clients in a direct services capacity. In the future, she hopes to apply to a legal fellowship to work with an organization dedicated to advancing immigrant rights. 

“I want to thank AALFNY for this incredible opportunity,” Julie stated. “Scholarships like these help alleviate financial barriers that many law students encounter when deciding to pursue a career in public interest law and encourage us to pursue our passions. I also want to thank my amazing mentors and friends from Asian Americans Advancing Justice SoCal for sending me this scholarship opportunity. I am so grateful for their friendship and support.”

Sarah Raterta:

Sarah Raterta was introduced to an internship at the Migrant Center of the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Manhattan by Father Julian Jagudilla, a Filipino friar, in 2017. This internship allowed her to work directly with clients and see firsthand the true impact of her efforts, securing green cards, legal status, and citizenship, thus inspiring her to pursue a legal career in immigration advocacy.

With this scholarship, Sarah wants to give back to her community by making immigration processes more accessible. Currently interning with the National Immigration Project (NIP), she focuses on high-impact legal work, including recent projects in which she researches attorneys’ fees through the Equal Access to Justice Act, tracks pending habeas petitions in circuit courts, and more. In the future, Sarah wants to help indigent immigrants and the broader community, working  with nonprofit organizations or pro bono immigration services. 

Sarah stated, “I hope to become the kind of advocate who helps people feel like they never have to walk alone.”

Mikail Husain:

Mikail Husain works as a researcher in the labor movement, hearing workers’ stories about enduring difficult—and often dangerous—working conditions. This deeply angered him but also sparked a strong desire to acquire better tools to advocate for workers’ rights. Additionally, working alongside brilliant, dedicated attorneys further fueled this ambition, showing him firsthand that a career in law is a powerful way to fight for what he believes in.

With this scholarship, Mikail hopes to give back to his community by ensuring workers’ rights are both known and respected. Currently interning with the New York State Office of the Attorney General’s Labor Bureau, he assists with the Bureau’s legal battles to obtain justice for workers.

“I would recommend that aspiring lawyers not be afraid of reaching out to lawyers, law students or any other potential mentors with questions or for advice about pursuing a legal career,” Mikail suggested. “Speaking to my law school’s career planning advisor is how I found out about this in the first place!”

Thank you to everyone who attended the Summer Reception at McDermott Will & Schulte to celebrate the 2026 recipients of AALFNY Public Interest Scholarship. To see the full photo album, featuring photos taken by AABANY Legal Intern Clive Chong, click here.

Thank you to McDermott Will & Schulte for generously providing the space for this event.

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AABANY and AALFNY Celebrate Recipients of the 2024 Public Interest Scholarship at FTI Consulting

On Monday, June 24,  the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) gathered with members of the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) to celebrate the recipients of AALFNY’s 2024 Public Interest Scholarships at the AALFNY-AABANY Summer Reception at FTI Consulting, held at their offices at 1166 Avenue of the Americas.

Upon arrival, attendees chatted with one another, enjoying a grazing table, pizza, and drinks. The program began with the sound of clinking bottles, drawing everyone’s attention to Sylvia Chin, President of AALFNY. Sylvia presented introductory remarks about AALFNY and thanked Jason Sabot, Senior Managing Director at FTI Consulting, for generously providing the venue for the gathering. Yang Chen, Executive Director of AABANY, also spoke, touching on the origins of AALFNY and its prior incarnation as the AABANY Foundation, the charitable arm of AABANY. He reminded the lawyers present of their shared ethical and moral obligations to perform pro bono legal services and emphasized the importance of good works done by AABANY’s Pro Bono Clinics, highlighting the significance of giving back to the community. 

Sylvia then presented the 2024 Public Interest Scholarship award to Ranjana Venkatesh. Ranjana attends CUNY School of Law, and shared that this summer she will be interning at The Bronx Defenders’ Criminal Defense Practice under the Adolescent Defense Project. Ranjana noted that the Bronx is a historically under-represented  borough, but with The Bronx Defenders, she hopes to represent low-income residents through a holistic approach.

Jessica Chan, the other recipient of the scholarship, unfortunately could not attend the reception. Jessica, an AABANY member, attends New York Law School and will be interning with the Legal Aid Society in its Criminal Defense Practice. She is looking forward to using her experience in criminal defense work to build bridges between communities of color.

Thank you to all who attended the Summer Reception at FTI Consulting to not only celebrate the recipients of the 2024 Public Interest Scholarship, but also the value and importance of public interest work. To learn more about AALFNY, please click here.

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AALFNY and AABANY to Host Summer Reception Congratulating AALFNY 2022 Public Interest Scholarship Recipients

For immediate release: July 4, 2022

Contact: Info@AsianAmericanLawFund.org

Please join us on Wednesday, July 13, 2022, at 6 PM for a virtual AALFNY-AABANY Summer Reception to congratulate the AALFNY 2022 Public Interest Scholarship recipients. The awards ceremony will be followed by a panel discussion on Endless Tide, the recent report on Anti-Asian violence in New York. Register at https://news.whitecase.com/395/19601/landing-pages/blank-registration.asp.

The Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) is proud to announce the recipients of its 2022 Public Interest Scholarships.

  1. Juliana Chang, a student at Harvard Law School, graduating in 2024, is interning at A Better Balance to combat pregnancy and caregiver discrimination.
  2. Vincent Kwan, a student at UC Hastings Law School, graduating in 2024, is interning with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, Criminal Division.
  3. Emlyn Medalla, a student at CUNY School of Law, graduating in 2023, is interning with the National Domestic Workers Alliance focusing on domestic worker labor and employment issues.

AALFNY is also honored to support the scholarship program of the South Asian Bar Association of New York (SABANY). This year’s AALFNY/SABANY Fellowship Award has been awarded to Mahum Vance, a rising second-year law student at New York Law School, who is interning this summer at Lawyers for Children, an organization that advocates for children in foster care.

We also applaud the organizations with which these students will be working.

AALFNY was founded as a nonprofit in 1993 by founders and board members of the Asian American Bar Association of New York. Since 1997, AALFNY has funded more than 60 public interest scholarships to encourage law students to use their knowledge and experience to assist their communities.

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Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) Awards Public Interest Scholarships for Summer 2021

For Immediate Release
Contact: Sylvia Chin, schin@asianamericanlawfund.org

Please join us on Friday, June 25, 2021 at 6:30 PM on Zoom at the AABANY-AALFNY Summer Reception to congratulate the AALFNY 2021 Public Interest Scholarship recipients. Register online at https://aabany.org/aalfnysummer.

Amanda Jimenez Evelyn (Meng) Lin

Shelley Wu

Dawa Lhamo

Amanda Jimenez (CUNY School of Law, Class of 2022) will be interning with Mission to End Modern Slavery, where she will be assisting migrant workers and trafficking victims;

Evelyn (Meng) Lin (Syracuse University College of Law, Class of 2022) will be interning with the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic at Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York; and

Shelley Wu (Cardozo School of Law, Class of 2023) will be interning with the Domestic Violence Project at the Urban Justice Center.

We will also honor the recipient of the AALFNY-SABANY Public Interest Fellowship: Dawa Lhamo (CUNY School of Law, Class of 2023), who will be interning with Catholic Migration Services.

The Asian American Law Fund of New York awards Public Interest Scholarships each year to law students with a demonstrated commitment to the Asian American community. The purpose of the award is to assist law students with their tuition while encouraging them to use their legal knowledge and training to benefit the Asian American community in New York and to foster commitment by law students to public service for the Asian American community in New York.  Since 1997, AALFNY has funded more than 60 public interest scholarships to law students.

The Asian American Law Fund of New York was established in 1993 by the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) to create and support non-profit and charitable efforts to eliminate prejudice and discrimination and to defend human and civil rights.

Donations to AALFNY may be made at asianamericanlawfund.org/donate .
A copy of our latest annual report may be obtained from us at P.O. Box 161, 41 Purdy Ave., Rye NY 10580 or from the NY Attorney General’s Charities Bureau website www.charitiesnys.com. Information may also be obtained from us at donations@AsianAmericanLawFund.org or the NYS Attorney General at 212-416-8686.

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