Washington, D.C. (April 20, 2010) – The Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies announced last week that its Board of Directors has named the recipients of its annual awards to be presented at the APAICS Awards Dinner held at the JW Marriott on May 11, 2010.
The APAICS Distinguished Corporate Achievement Award will go to Reggie Aggarwal, CEO and Founder of Cvent, a profitable venture-backed CRM software company with 500+ employees.
In 2009, he was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in the Greater Washington area. Forbes Magazine called him one of the rising stars of Washington. Marriott Meeting News, the largest magazine in the industry, named him as one of the 25 most influential people in the $100 billion dollar meetings industry. He was also appointed by the Governor of Virginia to be Chairman of the Chief Information Officers Advisory Commission.
The Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award will go to Rear Admiral Ming Chang (USN-Ret.). HE served in the U.S. Navy for 34 years before retiring in 1990, and along the way became the first Asian American naval officer to reach flag rank.
Adm. Chang held a variety of cruiser and destroyer commands before becoming Department of the Navy Inspector General in 1987. After leaving the Navy, Chang became vice president and corporate director for the Pacific region at Raytheon International and then president of MEC International, LLC. He is also Chair Emeritus of APAICS.
The Distinguished Community Award will be presented to M. Farook Sait, who is Special Counsel to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Prior to his current appointment Sait held several management positions in that office.
Sait has taught graduate courses for Central Michigan University, Pepperdine University, and Columbia Union College, and provides pro bono legal services to community and religious organizations. He is a native of India and came to the United States to earn an undergraduate degree from Columbia Union College in Takoma Park, Maryland, then a JD from Howard University and graduate from the Senior Executive Leadership program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
In addition Sait is a founding member of the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring, Maryland. He is also President of the Federal Asian Pacific American Council.
The awards banquet is well attended by members of Congress, political appointees, dignitaries from local, state and federal levels of government. Maryland Secretary of Veterans Affairs Ed Chow, a former staff at APAICS, is also planning to be in attendance.
Television personality Sonya Gavankar will be Mistress of Ceremonies at the 16th APAICS Gala Awards Dinner. She currently hosts programs on PBS, BGTV, and MHz Networks. Gavankar serves as the face of the Newseum by hosting live interview programs, appearing in video installations, video blogs and game shows.
APAICS was founded in 1994 by former Secretary of Commerce Norman Y. Mineta. It is a non-profit, non-partisan, educational organization that seeks to increase Asian American and Pacific Islander participation and representation in government.
For further information regarding the 16th Annual Gala Awards Dinner, please contact 202-296- 9200 or visit online at www.apaics.org.
