AAARI.info - Asian/Asian American Research Institute

Seema Agnani is Executive Director and co-founder of Chhaya CDC. Before returning to Chhaya as Executive Director in 2007, she was the Coordinating Consultant to the Fund for New Citizens at The New York Community Trust, a donor collaborative supporting immigrant rights work. She was also the Director of Training and Technical Assistance at Citizens for NYC. In addition, she worked with Asian Americans for Equality for several years as a housing development associate while also focusing on fundraising and development; and later served as a coordinator of the Lower Manhattan Health Care Coalition. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development. She is a former recipient of The Charles H. Revson Fellowship at Columbia University, earned her Bachelors at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and a Masters of Urban Planning and Public Administration at the University of Illinois in Chicago. She is proficient in Hindi, French and Sindhi. Seema, a Midwesterner at heart, loves swimming in swampy lakes almost as much as the exploring the streets of the big city.

Kiran Ahuja was appointed on December 14, 2009 to the position of Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), housed in the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, DC. In this capacity, she is responsible for directing the efforts of the White House Initiative and the Presidential Advisory Commission on AAPIs to advise federal agency leadership on the implementation and coordination of federal programs as they relate to AAPIs across executive departments and agencies. The White House Initiative on AAPIs works with these entities to improve the quality of life and opportunities for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders through increased access to, and participation in, federal programs in which they may be underserved.

For almost twenty years, Ms. Ahuja has dedicated herself to improving the lives of women of color in the U.S. Well-known as a leader among national and grassroots AAPI and women's rights organizations, Ms. Ahuja served as the founding Executive Director of the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF) from 2003-2008. Through her leadership, Ms. Ahuja built NAPAWF from an all-volunteer organization to one with a paid professional staff who continue to spearhead successful policy and education initiatives, expanded NAPAWF's volunteer chapters and membership, and organized a strong and vibrant network of AAPI women community leaders across the country.

Ms. Ahuja grew up in Savannah, Georgia, where her understanding of race, gender and ethnicity was formed as a young Indian immigrant. She attended Spelman College, an historically black college, and the University of Georgia School of Law. Following law school, she was chosen as one of five Honors Program trial attorneys for the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, where she litigated education-related discrimination cases and filed the Department's first peer-on-peer student racial harassment lawsuit. In addition, she participated in the Division's National Origin Working Group as part of a core group of attorneys who organized response efforts for the Division after the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Ravinder S. Bhalla was elected on June 9, 2009 as a Councilman-at-Large for the City of Hoboken. Mr. Bhalla was born and raised in New Jersey and currently resides in Hoboken’s 2nd Ward, where he also serves a Democratic Committeeman for the 3rd District of the 2nd Ward.

Mr. Bhalla is an attorney-at-law with a law practice in downtown Hoboken, where he practices in the areas of employment law, commercial litigation, local government law and criminal defense in the federal and state courts of New Jersey and New York.

Mr. Bhalla received his undergraduate education from the University of California at Berkeley, where he received a B.A. in Political Psychology. Upon graduation, he attended the London School of Economics (L.S.E.) in the United Kingdom and received a Master of Science degree in Public Administration and Public Policy. Mr. Bhalla earned a Juris Doctor Degree from Tulane Law School in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Mr. Bhalla is admitted to practice in the state courts of New Jersey and New York, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, and the United States District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Mr. Bhalla is married to Navneet K. Patwalia Bhalla, and they have one daughter, Arza K. Bhalla, aged 2.

Wellington Z. Chen, B.S. Originally appointed by Governor George Pataki in June 2000 as a trustee of the Board of The City University of New York, Mr. Chen was reappointed by the Governor in June 2005. Mr. Chen was born in Taiwan, and lived in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Brazil before arriving in New York over 30 years ago as an adolescent. He is conversant in several languages, including Chinese (Amoy, Cantonese, Mandarin), and Brazilian-Portuguese.

Mr. Chen, a resident of Queens and a long-time community leader, graduated from the School of Architecture and Environmental Studies at City College. He was the first Chinese American in Queens to serve on a community planning board, where he chaired the cultural affairs, housing, landmarks, planning and zoning committees and helped to bring about the revival of downtown Flushing.

Mr. Chen is the Executive Director of the Chinatown Partnership Development Corporation, and in this capacity he will lead the Chinatown Partnership in implementing major initiatives in tourism, marketing and public space improvements in a comprehensive effort to improve business conditions. Mr. Chen was a Commissioner of the New York City Board of Standards and Appeals which reviews zoning variances, special permits, and other land use appeals.

Mr. Chen is Chair of the Board's Standing Committee on Academic Policy, Program, and Research, and holds membership of the Board's Standing Committee on Facilities, Planning, and Management.

Margaret Chin immigrated to the U.S. with her family from Hong Kong in 1963 when she was nine years old. She grew up in NYC Chinatown and attended P.S. 130 and JHS 65. She graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and from the City College of New York (CCNY) with a degree in education. It was at City College through taking Asian Studies courses that Margaret got involved in community organizing. For more than 30 years she has dedicated herself to public service to help immigrants, low income and working families.

Margaret worked for 14 years at LaGuardia Community College's Division of Adult and Continuing Education helping immigrant adults get a college education. Many of her students learned English, got a college degree and built a better life for their families.

For the past 11 years Margaret worked at Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE), an organization that she helped to form when she was in college. As the deputy executive director, Margaret led the organization’s work in advocacy, community organizing and coalition building. She fought for the preservation and building of affordable housing; better access to government services; equal opportunity and fair treatment, for immigrants, low income and working families. Margaret left her position at AAFE at the end of August 2008 to focus on her City Council Campaign.

In her many years of public service she served on boards of many not-for-profit organizations. Margaret was formerly the Chairperson of the NY Immigration Coalition (NYIC). She was a board member of the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development (ANHD) and chaired the Advocacy Committee. Margaret was a founding member of Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corporation (CPLDC) and served as the vice-chair of the board. Additionally, Margaret served as chair of the Census Bureau’s Race and Ethnicity Advisory Committee on the Asian and Pacific Islander Population for Census 2000. Margaret was a member of Community Board 3 and Community Board 1. Margaret was also one of the founding members of Asian Americans for Equality, where she served as President of the board from 1982 to 1986. In 2003 Margaret was a Fannie Mae Foundation Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

As an advocate for civic participation and voter education, Margaret was elected to the Democratic State Committee for two terms from 1986 to 1990. Margaret ran for City Council in 1991, 1993 and 2001. She fought hard to get bilingual ballots for the Asian community.

Margaret is married to Alan Tung, a public school teacher at P.S. 3 in Greenwich Village. Their son, Kevin, attended public schools and graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and Syracuse University. Margaret’s mom is a retired garment worker and still lives in Chinatown.

Rocky Chin is an attorney and civic leader with extensive experience on civil rights issues.

In April 2007, Mr. Chin was appointed Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity & Diversity for the New York State Division of Human Rights. Prior to this appointment, Rocky was a Supervising Attorney at the New York City Commission on Human Rights and was Assistant Deputy Commissioner for Community Relations during David N. Dinkins mayoralty. At the City Commission, he was involved in the City Commission’s efforts to open private clubs to women and to address discrimination against people with disabilities, immigrants and gays and lesbians.

Rocky Chin was a candidate for City Council in 2001 and was active in efforts to rebuild Lower Manhattan after 9/11. He was among the first instructors of Asian American Studies in New York City and taught courses at NYU, Hunter & Cornell University’s Law School. His article on Affirmative Action was published in the American Bar Association’s November 1999 Special Issue on “Asian Americans & the Law.” A founding member of the Asian American Bar Association of New York and the Asian American Law Fund, he is currently President of the Asian American Arts Alliance and the Association of Asian American Yale Alumni and continues to be active in civic affairs.

Mr. Chin holds a law degree from the University of Southern California, a Masters Degree in City Planning from Yale University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Lehigh University.

Steve Choi is currently the Executive Director of the MinKwon Center for Community Action (formerly YKASEC – Empowering the Korean American Community), which has grassroots organizing, advocacy, service, and education initiatives designed to empower community members. He previously directed the Korean Community Law Project, which provides free direct legal services to low-wage Korean immigrants – the only such project of its kind on the East Coast. Since September 2004, the Project has filed over 25 cases in conjunction with the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) and represented more than 50 workers against employers who have violated the rights of Korean immigrant workers. Through active litigation, the Project has helped secure nearly $800,000 in total settlements, court victories, and awards on behalf of these workers.

Mr. Choi was formerly a staff attorney at AALDEF, and his previous legal experience includes working for the Hale and Dorr Legal Services Center in Massachusetts, Greater Boston Legal Services, and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC) of Los Angeles. He received his B.A. from Stanford University in History with Honors and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. Mr. Choi has received numerous awards for his work, including the Korean American Association’s “Man of the Year” Award, the Wasserstein Fellowship, the Skirnick Public Interest Fellowship, the Skadden Fellowship, the the Asian American Lawyers of Massachusetts (AALAM) Scholarship, and the Harvard Law School Asian Pacific American Alumni Award.

Judy Chu was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Representative of California's 32nd District in July 2009. Dr. Chu immediately got to work representing the interests of her constituents, voting on several environmental bills and working through the night on her first day in office, during a marathon debate on important healthcare reform legislation as part of her first assignment on the House Education and Labor Committee. Rep. Chu has also been assigned to the House Judiciary and Government Oversight Committees.

Previously, she was elected to the California State Board of Equalization in November 2006. In January 2009, Dr. Chu was unanimously elected Vice Chair of the Board of Equalization. She previously served as BOE Chair in 2008. She also serves as Chair of the BOE Legislative Committee.

Before joining the State Board of Equalization, Dr. Chu served three terms as a State Assembly Member for the 49th District in the West San Gabriel Valley from 2001 to 2006. She was Chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee, which oversees all legislation that has a fiscal impact on the state.

In addition, Dr. Chu served as Chair of the California Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, Assembly Select Committee on Hate Crimes, and Assembly Subcommittee on Health and Human Services. She was also a member of the Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee, Labor and Employment Committee, and Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee.

In 2004, Dr. Chu authored a landmark tax amnesty bill which was estimated to bring in $300 million but actually brought in $4.8 billion in revenue for the state budget without raising taxes. Several states offered tax amnesty that year, and California's was the most successful tax amnesty program in the nation.

Prior to the State Assembly, Dr. Chu served on the Monterey Park City Council for thirteen years from 1988 to 2001, and served as Mayor three times. She began her career in public service as a Board Member of the Garvey School District from 1985 to 1988. Dr. Chu has been dedicated to education for decades, and was a community college professor of psychology for 20 years. She holds a Ph.D. in psychology and a B.A. in mathematics.

Jennifer Hayashida is Acting Director of the Asian American Studies Program (AASP) at Hunter College, CUNY. While at Hunter College, she has worked closely with students, faculty, administrators, and community groups to strengthen and expand the AASP; initiatives include collaborations with community-based organizations including AAWW, Asia Society, CACF, and AALDEF, intended to give Hunter students interdisciplinary opportunities to apply their coursework to NYC’s dynamic Asian American communities. In addition to her work as an educator, she is a writer and translator, and is currently a writer-in-residence through the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s 2008-2009 Workspace Program.

Wayne Ho, MPP, is the Executive Director of the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF). He leads the nation’s only pan-Asian children’s advocacy organization that aims to improve the well-being of children and families of all Asian Pacific American backgrounds. During his tenure, CACF has successfully improved language access in New York City public schools, increased state funding to address mental health issues, and increased city funding to hire bilingual child abuse caseworkers. CACF’s organizational budget has also more than doubled under his leadership. Wayne received a Making a Difference Award from the Family Health Project, a Commissioner’s Child Advocacy Award from the NYC Administration for Children's Services, a Community Champion Award from the Korean American Family Service Center, and a Community Service Award from the Organization of Chinese Americans – New York Chapter.

To ensure that Asian Pacific American needs are being represented, Wayne is a member of the New York State Governor's Children's Cabinet Advisory Board, Internal Review Board of the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, New York City Citizen Review Panel, and Immigration Advisory Board of the NYC Administration for Children's Services (ACS). He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the New York Foundation, Board of Directors and Program Council of the Partnership for After School Education (PASE), Board of Directors of Coro New York Leadership Center, Board of Directors of the Human Services Council, and Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Multicultural Audience Development Initiative. He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business of New York University.

Previously, Wayne was the administrator of out-of-school time programs for San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), where he collaborated with community based organizations, city and county agencies, and state and federal departments to meet the academic and social needs of over 7,000 students at 72 underserved K-12 schools. During his tenure, SFUSD was recognized by the California Department of Education as a model after school partnership. He also conducted policy analysis for ACS on options for public and non-profit agencies to expand child care and worked with the Blue Ridge Foundation New York on performance management systems for start-up non-profits. In the San Francisco Bay Area, Wayne founded several volunteer-based programs to empower youth of color to pursue higher education and to become community advocates.

Wayne received his bachelor degree from UC Berkeley and his Master in Public Policy from Harvard University. He also completed the New American Leaders Program of the Coro New York Leadership Center and New York Immigration Coalition as well as the Leadership Caucus of Community Resource Exchange.

Tiloma Jayasinghe is the Executive Director of Sakhi for South Asian Women. She joined the staff in February 2010. She was formerly a Social Affairs Officer at the United Nations Division for the Advancement of Women where she was responsible for analyzing and identifying policies and practices eliminating violence against women from an international perspective. Prior to that, she was the National Advocates for Pregnant Women’s first Baron Edmond de Rothschild Staff Attorney Fellow where she focused her legal, educational, and organizational skills on the intersection of the war on reproductive rights and the war on drugs. She is a graduate of New York University and the George Washington University School of Law. Ms. Jayasinghe's diverse legal background includes litigating bankruptcy and financial restructuring cases, filing Habeas Corpus appeals, VAWA petitions, and preparing amicus curaie briefs before state and federal appellate courts throughout the United States. As an associate at the international law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe and Maw, LLP, she spearheaded a pro bono project supporting the development and creation of the Asian University for Women. She is also a birth doula and a founding member of With Woman Doula Coopertiva. Ms. Jayasinghe has served as the New York Chapter Representative to the Board of Directors of NAPAWF (National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum).

Hiroko Karan is Professor of Chemistry in the Department of Physical, Environmental and Computer Sciences at Medgar Evers College/CUNY. Dr. Karan obtained her Ph.D. in Organic Photochemistry from Brown University. After postdoctoral positions at Fels Research Institute at Temple University Medical School and the Biophysics Laboratory at New York University, she joined the faculty of chemistry at Medgar Evers College, the City University of New York in 1980. During 1992 – 2004, she served as Chairperson of the Department, Assistant Dean and Dean of the School of Science, Health and Technology. Subsequently, she served as Executive Director of Office of Research and Sponsored Programs till 2007.

Dr. Karan currently serves as the Chair of the Governing Board of the Asian American and Asian Research Institute (AAARI) at CUNY and was elected as the 2010 Chair-elect of the New York Section of the American Chemical Society that serves over 4100 members in the New York areas.

Madhulika S. Khandelwal is Director of the Asian/American Center and Associate Professor in Urban Studies Department at Queens College, City University of New York. She has taught Asian American Studies at a number of universities and has conducted research on contemporary Asian American communities.

Prof. Khandelwal’s main interests include immigrants, women, South Asian diaspora, Asian American communities, and multicultural issues in the United States. Dr. Khandelwal’s ethnographic research on South Asian immigrant communities in the New York area has been published in her book Becoming American, Being Indian: An Immigrant Community in New York City (Cornell University Press, 2002).

Born in India, Prof. Khandelwal was educated in both India and the United States and holds a Ph.D in History from Carnegie-Mellon University. Her academic career focuses on engaging diverse cultural and community issues and she has served on the boards of organizations such as National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (NAPALC), the Association for Asian American Studies, and Citylore. She is widely recognized for her community-oriented research and has been honored by NYC Comptroller’s Office, Queens Women’s Center, Elmhurst Hospital Center, and community organizations such as Pragati, Nav Nirman, and SAYA! (South Asian Youth Action !).

Peter Koo was elected to the New York City Council in November 2009. Councilman Peter Koo immigrated to America from Hong Kong in 1971. He worked minimum wage jobs at Kentucky Fried Chicken and Dunkin Donuts to put himself through the University of New Mexico - College of Pharmacy, where he earned a Bachelors of Science degree. Peter Koo founded and became CEO and President of the Starside Pharmacy chain located in Flushing, Queens.

As a local businessman and community activist, he has tirelessly fought for the needs of the residents who live in his home community and has become one of Flushing’s foremost community activists. Peter has served as the Chairman of Program Services for the Flushing Business Improvement District (BID) and President of the Flushing Chinese Business Association.

Prior to taking office, Peter Koo was an active member of Community Board 7, representing Flushing, Whitestone, Bay Terrace and College Point; he has served as an advisor of the Queens General Hospital Community Advisory Board; Treasurer, Founder and Trustee of the LaGuardia Community College Foundation; the Flushing Lions Club, Flushing Rotary Club and the American Cancer Society.

He is also President of the Peter Koo Community Charitable Organization. Peter’s recent philanthropy includes a $100,000 donation to LaGuardia Community College, and 20 wheelchairs to Elmhurst Hospital. Throughout the years, he has also donated generously to several local senior centers.

He has been affectionately been called the “Mayor” of Flushing, because of his involvement in civics, his accessibility to the public and for his philanthropic endeavors.

Peter is married to his wife Bernadette for 26 years and has two children, Timothy and Tiffany.

John C. Liu was sworn into office as the 43rd Comptroller of the City of New York on January 1, 2010.

From 2001 – 2009, John Liu served as a member of the New York City Council representing District 20 in Queens. Throughout his tenure, he also served as Chair of the Transportation Committee, focusing public policy on the critical role transportation options play in economic development and access to jobs. He also actively served on the Committees on Education, Consumer Affairs, Contracts, Health, Land Use, Lower Manhattan Redevelopment and Oversight & Investigation, as well as on the Executive Board of the Black, Latino & Asian Caucus.

His most significant accomplishments as a legislator include exposing financial irregularities at the MTA, shepherding bills through his committee designed to enhance administrative efficiency, and enacting legislation that ensures equal access to city services regardless of language ability. He is also widely known for being a vocal proponent of immigration reform, successfully taking on television and radio shock-jocks who broadcast hate over public airwaves, and demanding justice for hate and bias-related crimes.

Hailed as a “Trailblazer” and “Pioneer”, John Liu’s historic elections as the first Asian American elected in New York City – both to legislative office in 2001 and a citywide post in 2009 – were marked milestones for Asian Americans in the city and across the nation. Although he wishes Asian Americans had been elected long before in New York, he is honored to be the first. He has embraced the responsibilities and opportunities that come with the distinction to broaden representation and access to government.

John Liu is a certified actuary, and immediately prior to being elected to the City Council in 2001, managed a team of actuaries at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

John Liu is a proud product of New York City public schools beginning with kindergarten at P.S. 20 in Queens through to the Bronx High School of Science, followed by Binghamton University, where he earned his degree in Mathematical Physics. He resides in Flushing, Queens with his wife, Jenny, and their son, Joseph.

Glenn D. Magpantay is a Staff Attorney for the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund. Magpantay oversees AALDEF’s Asian American Election Projection efforts in fifteen states across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest. In 2004, he coordinated the nation’s largest exit poll of Asian Americans surveying over 11,000 voters in 23 cities.

Magpantay has published scholarly legal articles, authored a number of reports, and has given commentary to numerous media outlets including The New York Times, USA Today, Boston Globe, CNN, and National Public Radio on the Voting Rights Act, bilingual ballots, redistricting, and Asian American voting patterns and political opinions.

He currently teaches the Race & the Law at Rutgers School of Law – Newark and a clinical seminar on Individual Rights and Representation at Brooklyn Law School. He serves as a Commissioner to the New York City Voter Assistance Commission and as a Steering Committee member of the Gay Asian & Pacific Islander Men of New York (GAPIMNY).

Magpantay attended the State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook on Long Island, and graduated cum laude from New England School of Law in Boston – after being admitted as an affirmative action beneficiary.

During her first term in office, Grace has emerged as a fighter for working families, children and senior citizens. She has already introduced over 40 bills in her first legislative session. She authored 5 laws that have already been signed into law by the Governor - becoming landmark legislation. These laws include extending unemployment coverage to 56,000 New Yorkers during tough economic times; and providing new incentives for property owners to commit to providing affordable housing. She also authored the historic law that eliminates the offensive word "oriental" which still existed in some government documents. As the author and sponsor of the Reverse Mortgage Act of 2009, her legislation prohibits proceeds received from reverse mortgages from being considered as income for the purpose of senior citizens' partial property tax exemption. She has also been able to work with the Governor and the congressional delegation to secure millions of dollars in stimulus money for Flushing for affordable housing, youth employment, and transportation infrastructure. Her office has also helped thousands of constituents get much needed money from EITC and HEAP programs – directly putting money back into the pockets of working families and senior citizens. Grace serves on the Assembly committees of Aging, Labor, Small Business, Libraries & Education Technology, Banks and Real Property Taxation. She was appointed as a member of the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety.

Joyce Moy is the Executive Director of the Asian American/ Asian Research Institute. She was the first Asian American director of a NYS Small Business Development Center. Her area of expertise is entrepreneurship and economic development. She has taught business law and taxation at Queens College, the CUNY School of Law, and at Cornell University School of Law. She is a former practicing attorney with over 15 years experience in corporate law, franchising, taxation and commercial areas. She recently served on the NYS Governor's Taskforce on Small Business and currently co-chairs the NYC Comptroller's Taskforce on Community Benefit Agreements.

Frank H. Shih, a former social worker and community advocate in New York City, received his M.A. and Ph.D. in Anthropology from the New School for Social Research. He is an adjunct faculty member at Suffolk County Community College in Long Island, New York. From 1996-2009, he was the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs at CUNY School of Law. Prior to this position, he was the Director of the Center for Academic Advising at the State University of New York at Stony Brook where he received the 1992 SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Professional Service.

Dr. Shih has interests in multiculturalism and pluralism and has written about the experiences of Asian and Asian American students and presented on diversity and conflict resolution issues. Dr. Shih’s research focuses on transnationalism and globalization and its particular impact on international education. He is the author of Re-shaping the Chinese Diaspora: International Education and Foreign Students from the People’s Republic of China (In, Education Landscapes in the 21^st Century: Cross-cultural Challenges and Multi-disciplinary Perspectives. B. Swaffield and I. Guske, eds., London: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008).

Dr. Shih serves on the Board of Directors of AAARI. As an active volunteer in the community, he is a Director of the United Way of Long Island and the Organization of Chinese Americans-- Long Island Chapter. He is also a member of the Advisory Council of Nassau Suffolk Law Services, Inc.

Gurpal Singh is the Executive Director and co-founder of SEVA Immigrant Community Advocacy Project. Gurpal Singh immigrated to Queens from India, in the early eighties at the age of six. While attending CUNY’s Baccalaureate Program, he began working as a community organizer with the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN). After graduating with a B.A. in Political Science and English, he began working with NYS Senator Malcolm Smith as Director of Constituent Affairs. Gurpal then attended CUNY Law School where he further developed his public interest principles by interning with Main Street Legal Services Immigrant & Refugee Rights Clinic and as a Revson Public Interest Fellow where Gurpal worked with the Committees on Immigration and Civil Rights at the New York City Council. It was also while he was a student at CUNY Law School that Gurpal co-founded SEVA, and began developing its long-term organizing strategies empowering immigrants throughout Queens and beyond. Currently, Gurpal Singh serves as the lead organizer of SEVA and works with the NYS Senate.