AILA Governance

Inclusive AILA

3/27/19 AILA Doc. No. 99900732.
Decorative Image

In April of 2016, the Board of Governors approved a Diversity and Inclusion Mission Statement for the Association as a reaffirmation of the organization's culture of openness to leadership by lawyers of diverse backgrounds. This culture goes back to AILA's founding years - in 1954, AILA's eighth president was its first female president. At that time, women were less than five percent of law school graduates, but Lena Orlow Ginsberg and the many women who have led us after her created a tradition of women's leadership that can be seen reflected to the present day.

The Diversity and Inclusion Mission Statement was not merely a reaffirmation of who we are as an Association, but also represents a call on all AILA leaders to take steps that ensure continued openness to participation by members of diverse backgrounds in chapter and national leadership. In order for leadership opportunities such as serving on committees, speaking at conferences, or taking Chapter officer roles to be truly inclusive, our current leaders are committing themselves with this Mission Statement to helping build our next generation of leaders from all backgrounds.

Chapter and national officers, past and present, can take a few concrete steps to help build our future leadership and ensure that it reflects a diverse and inclusive culture. Newer members, particularly from historically disadvantaged groups, can (and should!) ask their chapter leadership to take these steps and hold the accountable for fostering a culture of diverse and open leadership. These include:

  • Actively recruit new members of diverse backgrounds by speaking to law school classes, and by encouraging lawyer of diverse backgrounds as they develop immigration practices to join AILA;
  • Build a mentoring program in your chapters, and encourage past leaders to serve as mentors for newer members of all backgrounds, but particularly as mentors for lawyers with a background different from their own;
  • Staff committees and speaking opportunities with a mix of members, including both established leaders and members as well as members of diverse backgrounds, so that all can work together and get to know one another through collaboration;
  • Create "leadership ladders" within and across committees and conference programs so that members of diverse backgrounds have the opportunity to work with a broad variety of other members, and so that both established members and newer members are rotated through leadership and service opportunities; and
  • Holding ourselves accountable for fostering a diverse and inclusive culture by assessing the results of our efforts through year-over-year improvement of metrics such as retention, committee participation, and speaking opportunities by members of diverse backgrounds.

A primary responsibility of leaders within a volunteer-led organization like AILA is to find and train their replacements, and it is incumbent on all of us - but particularly on our current and past leadership - to take the steps necessary to build a strong and inclusive base for AILA's future. I look forward to working with all of our members to do so.

- William A. Stock, AILA Past President and AILA member since 1994

Related Resources