WASHINGTON — The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) has named Jenny R. Yang, chair of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), as the recipient of the 2016 NAPABA Women’s Leadership Award. The award recognizes the accomplishments of women lawyers and is presented to an individual who has achieved professional excellence in her field, demonstrated leadership and understanding of women’s issues, and made significant contributions to the Asian Pacific American legal community. 

The award will be presented at the Women’s Leadership Network Breakfast & Plenary at the 2016 NAPABA Convention in San Diego, California, on Nov. 5, 2016.

“Ms. Yang has a long and remarkable history of service and leadership to the Asian Pacific American community, and LGBTQ and women’s’ rights,” said NAPABA President Jin Y. Hwang. “We applaud her commitment to advancing equal opportunity and fairness in the workplace, and NAPABA is proud to honor Ms. Yang as the 2016 Women’s Leadership Award recipient.”

Ms. Yang is the first Asian American to be named EEOC chair on a permanent basis in its 50-year history, and is also the first Asian American woman to serve on the Commission. The EEOC is a five-member bi-partisan commission responsible for enforcing our nation's laws against workplace discrimination. She leads an agency with over 2,200 employees in 53 offices around the country with a budget of over $365 million.

Throughout her career in the non-profit, private, and government sectors, she has worked to protect the legal rights of Asian Pacific Americans through enforcement of our nation’s civil rights and workplace laws and through her service to the community. From 2007 until her confirmation to the EEOC in 2013, Ms. Yang served as a board member and vice chair of the Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center, which is dedicated to providing linguistically and culturally appropriate legal services to Asian Pacific Americans in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. From 1998 to 2004, she served as co-chair and board member of the National Governing Board of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, the only national multi-issue Asian Pacific American women’s organization in the country.

As chair of the EEOC, Ms. Yang is leading the agency as it charts its path forward for the next 50 years. She is also leading efforts to ensure that, as the nation's largest employer, the federal government serves as a model employer. Moreover, she is engaged in a broad effort to build stronger workplaces by exploring the root causes of persistent forms of discrimination and identifying effective strategies to prevent and remedy discrimination.

For more information, the media may contact Brett Schuster, NAPABA communications manager, at 202-775-9555 or bschuster@napaba.org.

The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) is the national association of Asian Pacific American attorneys, judges, law professors, and law students. NAPABA represents the interests of almost 50,000 attorneys and approximately 75 national, state, and local Asian Pacific American bar associations. Its members include solo practitioners, large firm lawyers, corporate counsel, legal services and non-profit attorneys, and lawyers serving at all levels of government. 

NAPABA continues to be a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting Asian Pacific American communities. Through its national network of committees and affiliates, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace, works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and promotes the professional development of people of color in the legal profession.

To learn more about NAPABA, visit www.napaba.org, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter (@NAPABA).