AUWCL Alumnae, Student Receive Peter M. Cicchino Awards
April 18, 2019
Three members of the American University Washington College of Law community have been named recipients of the 2019 Peter M. Cicchino Awards for Outstanding Advocacy in the Public Interest.
Mina Q. Malik ’98, M. Lucero Ortiz ’07, and 3L Ashwini Jaisingh were all honored on April 4 at the annual Peter M. Cicchino Public Service Dinner. Cicchino was an AUWCL professor, scholar, and public interest lawyer. In January 2000, the AUWCL faculty voted unanimously – with Cicchino abstaining – to create an award in his name.
The Peter M. Cicchino Awards are given annually to honor students and alumni whose devotion to, and creative service in, the public interest exemplify the highest ideals of AUWCL.
Alumna or Alumnus Whose Career has Spanned 15 years or more: Mina Q. Malik ’98
Until recently, Malik served as Deputy Attorney General for the Public Safety Division in the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia (OAG). As head of OAG’s Public Safety Division, Malik oversaw the majority of the District’s juvenile prosecutions and the prosecution of certain adult cases, while spearheaded OAG’s ongoing efforts to improve public safety in the District of Columbia through vigorous prosecution of violent offenders and implementation of data-driven programs that rehabilitated and redirected low-level, non-violent offenders.
Malik came to OAG from Harvard Law School, where she was a lecturer and senior advisor to the Fair Punishment Project, an initiative which seeks to create a fair and accountable justice system through legal action, public discourse, and education. She previously served as Executive Director of the New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), the nation’s largest police oversight agency.
Prior to CCRB, Malik served as Special Counsel to the Brooklyn District Attorney, served 15 years as Assistant District Attorney and later Senior Assistant District Attorney at the Queens County District Attorney’s Office, and worked as an investigator for the D.C. Public Defender Service. In February, Malik announced that she will run next year for the office of Queens County District Attorney.
Alumna or Alumnus Whose Career has Spanned 5-15 Years: M. Lucero Ortiz ’07
A seasoned attorney and public policy leader, Lucero previously managed her own legal practice focused on immigration and family law and worked at the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA), and Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. She currently serves the diverse immigrant community in the greater Metropolitan area as the Director of Legal Services at CARECEN.
During her career, Lucero has focused her efforts on immigrants' rights, family unification, workplace justice, empowerment strategies for underrepresented communities, and pro bono partnerships. She has appeared on local, national, and international print, television, and radio media on topics related to immigration law and policy.
Lucero has received several awards and recognitions, including DOL Secretary's Exceptional Achievement Award, HBA-DC's Rising Star Award, the Premio Inspiracion and Bou Alumni Award from AUWCL, among others.
Current Washington College of Law Student: Ashwini Jaisingh ’19
The daughter of Indian immigrants, Jaisingh has been a longtime advocate for immigrant and worker rights. During her time as an undergraduate at Georgetown University, she organized with campus janitors – predominantly immigrants from Central America – for better wages and working conditions.
Jaisingh went on to become a community organizer at CASA de Maryland from 2009-2015, eventually leading the organization’s domestic worker, day laborer, and youth organizing programs. She also helped recover thousands of dollars in back wages for domestic workers and facilitated community support for human trafficking survivors. Her work contributed to passage of the Maryland DREAM Act, driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants, and minimum wage increases. After CASA, she worked with the National Domestic Workers Alliance.
Jaisingh is currently a Student Attorney with AUWCL’s Immigrant Justice Clinic. During her time in law school, she interned at CAIR Coalition, the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild. She has volunteered at various community legal clinics, and served on the executive boards of the WCL National Lawyers Guild and the South Asian Law Students Association.