Norman Y. Mineta and Daniel K. Inouye Fellowships

Secretary Norman Y. Mineta & Senator Daniel K. Inouye

JACL Fellows - Ariel Imamoto (Norman Y. Mineta Fellow, 2024), Cheyenne Cheng (Norman Y. Mineta Fellow, 2020-22), and Jack Shimabukuro (Daniel K. Inouye Fellow, 2023-24)

This fellowship offers a chance to live in the nation’s capital and gain experience observing and learning from top professionals in civil rights and other non-profits.   

As a fellow, you become more familiar with congress and acquire the skills to correspond, collaborate, and maintain a working relationship with members of congress.

The Fellow assists the JACL National office in Washington, DC on a broad range of public policy issues important to the Asian American community.

This paid Fellowship is awarded to a qualified student or young professional who has completed at least an undergraduate degree and will last for a period of 12 months. The fellowship is sponsored through a grant from UPS.

The Mineta Fellow and the Inouye Fellow will work out of the JACL National office in Washington D.C. and be responsible for the following:

  • Staff and monitor key legislative initiatives and issues relevant to the AAPI community. 

    • Work on a wide variety of projects, issues and programs. 

    • Conduct research and study topics assigned. 

    • Interact with other national AAPI and civil rights organizations in the DC area. 

    • Work with JACL and other organizations to organize programs and events. 

    • Serve on various civil rights and AAPI committees. 

    • Perform a wide variety of duties, and work directly with the Executive Director

Candidates must be U.S. citizens and students or young professionals who have completed at least an undergraduate degree. Preference will be given to those who have demonstrated a commitment to Asian American issues, particularly those affecting the Japanese American community. Communication skills, especially in writing, are important.

UPDATE (11/23): Applicants are no longer required to be JACL members to apply for a policy fellowship!

The Norman Y. Mineta Fellowship was established in 2007 in honor of the American politician. Mineta served as U.S. Secretary of Transportation and Secretary of Commerce. Mineta also help found the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

The Daniel K. Inouye Fellowship is named for the late United States senator from Hawaii. The fellow will monitor key legislative initiatives of importance to the JACL mission, and design and implement JACL-sponsored programs among other tasks and duties.

The fellowships provide the opportunity to work on advocacy at a national level through the National JACL office based in Washington, D.C. As a fellow, you will become a key component

of the D.C. team. In this position you will be working with JACL staff, other fellows, and the executive director, collectively working to mobilize and inform local chapters. As part of this D.C. branch of National JACL, fellows are integral in establishing a voice for JACL and its members within D.C and the various networks. This voice is critical when it comes to policy issues that affect our communities and collaborating with other organizations in order to establish a stronger collective voice.