Saroya

Asma Saroya, Blaine, MN, is a 2007 graduate of St. Catherine University currently studying law at Hamline University in St. Paul. She plans to practice immigrant law serving minority communities. She is the co-founder and chairwoman of the Council on American-Islamic Relations-MN, where she advocates for victims of hate crimes and discrimination and educates the community and employers about legal rights and religious accommodation. She has worked as a clerk at the Immigrant Law Center of MN, and as a program coordinator and crime victim advocate for the Council on Crime and Justice in Minneapolis. She serves on the board of directors of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits and as a St. Paul Foundation Facing Race Ambassador. She has also been active with the Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights Task Force and the Minnesota International Center. Asma is using some of her scholarship to begin youth leadership programs in the Twin Cities, with the goal of offering young Muslims concrete ways through which they can leverage their faith values towards constructive citizenship that benefits community and country.