Leadership Team

Shaima Ahmad

Managing Director

Shaima Ahmad is the Managing Director at CAPAL. She manages the day to day operations at CAPAL, in addition to the long-term development of the organization. Shaima has over a decade of experience working with non-profit organizations. She previously worked with Asian American LEAD where she was responsible for creating, managing, and evaluating youth development programming for underserved youth in the DC metro area. The combination of her love for travel and community service led Shaima to build and run a youth service learning immersion program with a network of nonprofits based in the Sacred Valley of Peru. Shaima grew up in Maryland and later pursued her undergraduate degree in Business Administration in Beijing, China. She loves learning about new cultures, architecture, and traveling.

Contact Shaima at shaima.ahmad@capal.org

Hannah Park

Programs Manager

Hannah Park is the Programs Manager at CAPAL where she handles daily operations and coordinates CAPAL’s various programs such as CAPAL’s Scholarship and Internship Program and the Washington Leadership Program. Hannah graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.A. in International Affairs and English as well as a minor in Spanish. Her interest in advancing exposure to public service opportunities stems from her previous experience of supporting refugee resettlement programs in the metro Atlanta area and assisting with program implementation at a government agency. She formerly interned at non-profit organizations such as The Carter Center and New American Pathways as well as at a women’s magazine based in Bhutan. Hannah enjoys reading, writing, and trying new food.

Contact Hannah at hannah.park@capal.org.

Karman Chao

Co-Chair & Intern Alumna

Karman Chao (she/her) is excited to return to CAPAL after being an intern with the US Department of Agriculture – Rural Development. Her passion to build community power through community engagement, education, and access stems from her experience as a born and raised New Yorker of color, and as a daughter to immigrant parents. Karman’s initial exposure to public service was participating in the Chinese-American Planning Council’s Service Learning high school program in Brooklyn, where she learned the importance of being locally engaged. She later became its Program Coordinator, eventually leading her to spend a summer in Washington, DC through CAPAL. Karman has worked in NYC politics and for a NYS Senator to ensure the inclusion of communities of color in campaigns and policymaking. She is also a digital marketer, having crafted viral content that helped to pass historic NYS legislation, including the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, and the 2020 police reforms that repealed 50A and banned chokeholds. In her spare time, she can be found cooking, watching Broadway shows pre-pandemic, combatting gentrification on Lenape land, and supporting BIPOC-owned mom and pop shops. She previously served on the board of the Japanese American Citizens League – New York Chapter (JACL-NY) as their Communications Director, and remains active in the JACL’s Young Professionals Caucus.

Chingcha Vang

Vice Chair

Operating from a social justice framework, Chingcha took his passion for Asian American History to the classrooms of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As a High School social studies teacher at the Hmong American Peace Academy, Chingcha received the Excellence in Teaching Award at his school during his first year and was promoted to Social Studies Department Chair where he led successful efforts in crafting culturally responsive learning experiences in not just the classrooms, but also in the curriculum. After working as an educator and at the administrative level at his school, Chingcha received his Master’s Degree in Educational Policy and Leadership from Marquette University in 2018. Chingcha shifted his energies towards recruiting and retaining extraordinary and diverse leaders from colleges across the Midwest to teach preK-12th grade students within one of the Teach For America’s 51 regions. He continued to work at TFA in a coaching type role, where he supported over 20 first and second year teachers across 10 middle and high schools in Milwaukee, WI. Most recently, Chingcha’s passion of developing young leaders and centering Asian and Pacific Islander communities at the forefront of his work has led him to Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (LEAP). He currently serves as a Program Manager at LEAP where he leads efforts in designing and facilitating inclusive workshops with hopes to continue developing API leaders in both the corporate and non-profit sectors. On his free time, Chingcha serves across a multitude of non-profits in various roles from a Founding Board Member of Our Scholarship to Mentor through APIA Scholars.

Nisha Kurani

Co-Treasurer

Nisha Kurani is an expert in U.S. health policy. She currently work at KPMG specializing in strategy around and implementation of federal health policy. Previously, she worked at KFF researching, writing, and briefing the media on health care costs, health system performance, disparities for vulnerable populations, and reproductive health. In her spare time, Nisha enjoys creating ceramics, writing, hiking, and spending time with her partner and her dog Ravioli. Nisha received an M.P.P. from the University of California, Berkeley, and a B.S. from the University of California, San Diego.

Mayura Iyer

Co-Treasurer & Scholar Alumna

Mayura (she/her) is the proud daughter of Indian immigrants and a 2015 CAPAL Scholar – and is thrilled to be giving back to the AANHPI community and CAPAL by returning as a board member. Currently, she is a Senior Consultant for Alvarez & Marsal in Washington, D.C., specializing in education strategy & transformation. As a former public school teacher and a product of the Virginia public school system, Mayura is passionate about education policy, equity, and reform. Prior to consulting, Mayura was a Legislative Fellow in the U.S. Senate working on health, education, and labor policy. In this role, she helped secure funding for child care providers in the CARES Act stimulus package, and worked on several pieces of bipartisan legislation tackling mental health and maternal health. Previously, she was a Teach for America Corps Member in Dallas, TX and was a recipient of a Fulbright award to Mexico. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, reading, and checking off restaurants from her D.C. dining bucket list. Mayura holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the University of Virginia and a Master’s degree in Education from Southern Methodist University.

Rachel Rho

Vice Treasurer

Rachel Rho is a finance specialist working in the private sector. She is an expert in financial planning and analysis, as well as strategic corporate development decision making. She has years of prior experience working for government agencies as well, where she was an integral part of the budget cycle and developed, implemented and analyzed budgets. Rachel is interested in expanding her public service opportunities and help support those who may have an interest in a government career or the finance sector. She is always looking for opportunities to give back to the community and loves to volunteer at her local animal shelter. When she can, Rachel enjoys visiting museums, traveling, watching true crime shows, and trying new things.

Axel Defngin

Axel was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, and is from the islands of Yap, Federated States of Micronesia. He earned an MA in Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. He has served as Team Leader and Project Manager at Pacific Students Media, and he currently serves on the Asian & Pacific Islander American (APIA) Scholar Advisory Committee and for The Fourth Branch-Micronesia. Axel currently works as Program Manager for the Islands of Opportunity Alliance (IOA)-LSAMP at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.

ToQuyen Doan

ToQuyen Doan (she/hers) is the Director of Grants and Donor Engagement at RAINN, where she builds partnerships with foundations, corporate partners, and federal leaders to grow the organization’s operating budget to support survivors of sexual violence. Before RAINN, ToQuyen worked on multimillion-dollar federal proposals and contracts with the Department of Education, and fundraised for out-of-school educational opportunities for children in underrepresented, marginalized, and low-income communities, domestically and abroad. ToQuyen also worked to help end homelessness and addiction among veterans; developed resources to help small-scale farmers secure sustainable livelihood opportunities in Vietnam; assisted municipalities in Central Massachusetts applied for grants to aid in the management and development of energy projects; and consulted for various agencies on several sustainable development projects through the lens of social justice. ToQuyen also served in the Peace Corps from 2013-2015 as a rural community development specialist and educator. During her Peace Corps service, ToQuyen founded the Goght Community Resource Center in Armenia, funded through a grant in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development. ToQuyen holds a BA in Environmental Studies, MA in International Development and Social Change, and is Reiki 1 Certified and is completing her 200 Yoga Teacher Training.

Karim Farishta

Karim Farishta currently serves as the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA) at the Pentagon. He is the principal advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs on all matters pertaining to the Department of Defense’s interactions with state, local, and tribal leaders. He works to provide a unified and coordinated strategy for DoD’s outreach and communication with IGA leaders. In addition to these responsibilities, he has been a legislative liaison for Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia congressional engagement.

Prior to assuming his presidential appointment at DoD, Karim was the director of strategic alliances at The Asian American Foundation. He spearheaded the $1.1 billion philanthropic launch efforts to advocate for the passage and implementation of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act. To build an irrevocable sense of belonging for 23 million AAPIs, he led a $15M+ national anti-hate and belonging grantmaking portfolio by coordinating efforts on government relations, rapid response, cross-racial solidarity, and victims’ emergency services to ultimately track, respond to, and prevent hate.

In the Obama Administration, he served as the Program Manager for the White House Office of Management and Administration and supported the presidential transition team. In the 2020 presidential election, he was a coalitions director in TX and then worked for Vice President-elect Kamala Harris during the presidential inaugural committee. In the 2018 cycle, he managed a U.S. congressional campaign in Texas and executed the first-ever 27-language voter outreach program to turn out minority voters.

Karim was a Fulbright Scholar in Sri Lanka, where he launched an urban collaborative in Colombo to convene government, corporate, and community leaders to address shared concerns. A native of Houston, Texas, his family hails from Bangladesh, Burma, India, and Pakistan. Karim holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and was a Public Policy and Leadership Scholar. He graduated summa cum laude in International Affairs as a Harry S. Truman Scholar from The George Washington University.

Karim serves on the board of the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership. He is a NextGen Initiative for Foreign Policy for America member and was recognized in New America’s 2022 Out in National Security Leadership List.

Michelle Kuang

Michelle Lee Kuang is an attorney and nonprofit co-founder based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is an attorney for TikTok/Bytedance. In addition, she is the Deputy Director and co-founder of AAMPLIFY, an education nonprofit that supports Asian American youth leadership development, community advocacy, and college opportunity. She helps facilitate opportunities for youth to learn about Asian American history and systemic issues and gain the skills and support needed to be empowered leaders for social justice in their communities. Michelle received her B.A. in Political Science and Sociology from the University of California, San Diego, and her J.D. from Cornell Law School, where she was an editor of the Cornell Law Review and the President of the Public Interest Law Union. She represented workers and immigrants as part of the Farmworkers’ Legal Assistance Clinic and participated in legal clinics for agricultural workers in Central California. She spent a semester at the Obama White House in the Counsel’s office, where she worked on matters related to clemency and government ethics. Her prior affiliations also include the Center for Asians United for Empowerment (CAUSE Fellow), Justicecorps and the Asian-Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA).

Gisela Kusakawa

Gisela Perez Kusakawa is the Executive Director of Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF). AASF endeavors to protect the rights of Asian Americans and immigrants and promote academic belonging, openness, freedom, and equality for all. She was most recently the director of the Anti-Profiling, Civil Rights & National Security program (formerly the Anti-Racial Profiling Project) at Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, a national civil rights organization. She acted as the supervising attorney for legal referrals and laid the groundwork for the program. Over the years, she has worked on the intersections of national security, technology, criminal law, and immigration, including Countering Violent Extremism programs, the Muslim Ban, Southeast Asian deportation, immigration enforcement, and surveillance. Gisela has been featured on multiple media outlets including NPR, CNBC, LA Times, and WTOP Podcast “Colors: A Dialogue on Race in America.” Previously, Gisela worked with asylum seekers and detained immigrants. She served indigent immigrants under AmeriCorps in Ohio, and worked as a teacher in Ise City, Japan where she was also a disaster relief volunteer for the Tohoku tsunami. In her younger years, Gisela worked on business and job development in the rural villages of the Philippines, and was a former Rotary Scholar at Kofu City, Japan. She is a recipient of the NAPABA Law Foundation Community Law Fellowship and the Justice Thurgood Marshall Civil Liberties Award for her work in civil rights and public service. She is currently a board member and a founding member of the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Washington, DC. She is a representative of Pinay Powerhouse which seeks to uplift Filipino women in the legal profession. Gisela is admitted to practice law at the District of Columbia and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, and received her J.D. from The George Washington University Law School. Originally from Tondo, Manila in the Philippines, Gisela is passionate about helping low-income families and youth feel empowered and reach their potential. She is excited to work with students and young professionals to help them overcome challenges and have a support system. Gisela enjoys calligraphy, painting, and eating delicious food with her loved ones.

Denise Lew

Ms. Denise Lew (she/her/hers) is a US Air Force veteran who retired as a Colonel from the military after serving 26 years as a healthcare administrator. She is board certified and a Lifetime Fellow (LFACHE) in the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) and past chair of the ACHE’s Asian Healthcare Leaders Forum (AHLF). After retiring from the military, she spent 10 years as a healthcare consultant with Deloitte Consulting LLP, and supported multiple projects for the Military Health System, specializing in health plan operations, strategic planning, quality management, and patient safety. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, she lived in Texas, Virginia, Ohio, Utah and in the Azores, Portugal, before settling in the Washington DC area. During her time at Deloitte, Denise was actively involved in several firm initiatives, including recruiting, the Experienced Hire Initiative, and military veteran transition programs, as well as a wide variety of inclusion activities, such as the firm’s Federal Inclusion Council and the Armed Forces and Asian Business Resource Groups. Denise is also an active member of the Board of Admissions and the Community Affairs Committee of the University Club of Washington DC. She graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a BA in Health Arts and Sciences, and earned an MPA from California State University, East Bay. She is a proud single mom of her daughter, Leslie, who currently serves on active duty as a Navy Surface Warfare officer and is a 2013 graduate of the United States Naval Academy and 2020 MBA graduate of the Wharton Business School.

Mylynh Nguyen

Mylynh Nguyen currently serves as Dean of Scholar Support at the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. Her career includes a blend of higher education and nonprofit management experiences with a focus on education equity and racial equity. She has previously served as an educational adviser and faculty member at Northern Virginia Community College, Program Director at Asian American LEAD, Assistant Director at Georgetown University’s Center for Multicultural Equity & Access, and Director of TRIO Upward Bound at Hagerstown Community College. Earlier in her career, Mylynh devoted many years of service to science education as a faculty member and advisor supporting college students studying biological sciences and biotechnology. Mylynh completed her undergraduate degree in physiology and neurobiology at the University of Maryland and graduate studies in biomedical sciences at Hood College and organizational leadership at Gonzaga University. She also holds an executive certificate in Nonprofit Management from Georgetown University and a graduate certificate from Columbia University. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, exploring museums, trying new foods, and spending time with her partner and two young children.

Catt Phan

Catt Phan is the Senior Communications and Training Manager at Cause Communications, where she combines her experience in community relations, strategic communications and storytelling with a passion for amplifying community strength and developing culturally nuanced leaders from diverse backgrounds. Catt provides day-to-day support across Cause’s consulting projects and helps train cohorts on effective communications through Cause’s capacity building services. Driven by her passion to advance justice and equity, Catt has distinct expertise in using grassroots organizing to advocate for social change on every level, from local hard-to-reach communities to national service campaigns. She is a sought after and trusted thought partner and has been featured on multimedia channels, including NBC News, LAist, and Netflix, for her cultural expertise. She graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with her Bachelor of Arts and University of Southern California with a Master of Public Administration.

Chantale Wong

Chair

Chantale Wong currently serves as United States Director of the Asian Development Bank. She was appointed by President Biden to represent the United States on the board of directors in this role. She is passionate about using data to tackle global issues like sustainable international development. Chantale is an expert in open data, public policy, and program management. She has served as an advisor at Amida Technology Solutions. She was the presidentially appointed vice president for administration and finance, and CFO, at the Millennium Challenge Corporation, which under her leadership was the named the most transparent aid agency in the world. Prior to her work at MCC she was budget director at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, acting budget director at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and the chief of staff to the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

John Kusano

Vice Chair

John Kusano recently retired from a 35 year career with the US Forest Service from a position as a Senior Advisor to the Deputy Chief for Business Operations at the Forest Service Headquarters in Washington, DC focusing on Diversity and Inclusion Programs and Student Recruitment.

Prior to this he has held a number of positions in various fields and in various locations: Senior Advisor to the Deputy Chief for Research and Development, Forest Service Headquarters in Washington, DC | Division Director of the Human Capital Policy & Strategy Division of the Office of Human Capital Management at USDA involved with Department-wide programs in Human Resources Policy, Workforce Planning, and HR Accountability. | Assistant Director for Human Resource Management with the USDA Forest Service with responsibilities for Workforce Planning, Recruitment, Employee Development and Human Resource Technology. | Assistant Director of Civil Rights, Forest Service Headquarters in Washington, DC | Director of Civil Rights in the Forest Service’s Southwestern Region (NM & AZ). | District Reforestation Forester, Plumas National Forest, Forest Service’s CA Region

Jasmeet Ahuja

Jasmeet Kaur Ahuja is a lawyer at Hogan Lovells US LLP, where she focuses on privacy and cybersecurity matters. Prior to joining Hogan Lovells, Jasmeet served numerous arms of the U.S. government in developing defense and foreign relations policy. Early in her career, Jasmeet managed a national cybersecurity task force sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. As a Presidential Management Fellow with the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Secretary of Defense, she assisted in developing and managing the department’s priorities and assessing its capabilities in science and technology. Later, she served as the Director of South Asia for the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, where she implemented the department’s security commitments across the region and managed the distribution of over US$300 million in defense contracts. Most recently, Jasmeet served as the Professional Staff Member responsible for South Asia for the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs. In this role, she drafted legislation that continues to define our relationship with Pakistan and facilitated passage of legislation granting congressional consent to civilian nuclear cooperation with India.

Jasmeet clerked for the Honorable Kent A. Jordan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, and for the Honorable Mary A. McLaughlin of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Jasmeet graduated from Yale Law School, where she was a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow for New Americans, and earned a B.S. and an M.S. in engineering from Stanford University, where she graduated with Honors and Phi Beta Kappa.

She serves on the Advisory Boards of The Sikh Coalition, the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership, Project2049, and the Anti-Defamation League of Philadelphia.

Christine Chen

Christine Chen, the founding executive director of APIAVote from 2006-2008 returned in January 2011 to serve as its current Executive Director.  During her tenure she had strengthened and expanded APIAVote’s partners into 26 states.  In addition Chen serves as President of Strategic Alliances USA, a consulting firm specializing in coalition building, institutional development, and partnerships among the corporate sector, government agencies, and the nonprofit and public sector.

Carrie Kagawa

Carrie Kagawa is the former Chief of Staff at Truman Center for National Policy and Truman National Security Project, a national non-profit composed of 2,000+ service members, veterans, frontline civilians, policy experts, and political professionals. Prior to this, Carrie served in roles across the government, most recently as a Peace Corps Response Volunteer in Tbilisi, Georgia. Before Peace Corps, Carrie held positions in the Obama Administration to include Senior Advisor and White House Liaison at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Carrie also served at the U.S. Department of Defense, in a range of national security roles, including the Office of Rule of Law and Detainee Policy. This included a six-month civilian deployment to Kabul, Afghanistan. Previous positions include service at the White House and U.S. Senate. Carrie holds degrees from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Andrew Kim

Andrew is a Senior Analyst at Google’s Public Policy & Government Relations team and manages Google’s engagements with the U.S. Executive Branch. Andrew plays a leading role in shaping Google’s policy agenda in security, artificial intelligence, and transportation and infrastructure, among a wide range of other internet and technology policy issues. Previously, Andrew was a Policy Advisor at Google’s Trust & Safety team and developed product policies for Android, Chrome, and emerging virtual reality and IoT products.

Andrew started his career at the Pentagon as a Country Director for China and South Korea in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He continued his government service at the State Department, managing North Korea security issues in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific affairs and then moving to Embassy Rangoon to serve as the Special Assistant to the U.S. Ambassador to Burma.

Andrew has lived and traveled extensively across Asia and is fluent in Mandarin and Korean. He received his MPA and AB summa cum laude from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. He is originally from New York and lives in Washington, D.C. with his wife.

Viraj Patel

Viraj Patel is a higher education leader, educator, grassroots organizer, and facilitator based in Chicago, IL. With over a decade of experience at various institutions of higher learning, including Georgetown University, George Washington University, and the University of Pennsylvania, Viraj now serves as the Inaugural Director for the Asian American Student Academic Program at the University of Illinois Chicago. In this role supported by the AANAPISI grant, Viraj supports and advocates for Asian American students in their academic transition with a focus on delivering culturally conscious academic advising, navigation of university systems, and cocurricular education to support retention and, ultimately, degree completion.  Viraj is a proud past Board member of CAPAL and, during her time in Washington, D.C. worked at Georgetown University and George Washington University in student-centered positions, and was involved with a number of community and nonprofit organizations. Viraj holds a B.A. in English with a Minor in Asian American Studies from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a Master of Education from the University of Vermont and is a Doctoral candidate in the Ed.D program at the University of Pennsylvania, where her research focuses on experiences of South Asian students in Ethnic Student Organizations. She welcomes connections with anyone interested in conspiring to support Asian American and Pacific Islander students on and off campus!