The Asian American Pacific Islander and Middle Eastern and North African Women in the Legal Academy Workshop honored GW Law professor Cynthia Lee with the “Award for Dedicated Service to the Academy” at its annual workshop in October.
The workshop, which was hosted this year at the William and Mary Law School, brings together AAPI and MENA women who work as scholars, researchers, teachers, and practitioners in the legal field. The group chose to honor Lee, the Edward F. Howry Professor of Law at GW, because of her work to lift up others in the field.
“Over the past few decades, Professor Cynthia Lee has mentored countless individuals who have sought her expertise and guidance,” said Margaret Hu, who is the Taylor Reveley Research Professor and Professor of Law at the William & Mary Law School and one of the leaders of the workshop. “She works tirelessly to support students and faculty through excellence in teaching and research of the highest caliber and importance.”
Lee’s reputation for her cutting-edge scholarship in criminal law and criminal procedure, her commitment to service and the community, and her experience leading as the chair of the American Bar Association’s Multicultural Women’s Attorneys Network all contributed to the decision behind the award, Hu said.
For those who have worked with Lee, the award is a no brainer.
“Cynthia is an incredibly generous mentor—and I have seen proof of that not just with me, but with others,” said Nancy Cantalupo, a professor at the Wayne State University Law School whom Lee mentored early in her career. “Cynthia understands the ways that students can question the expertise, and even the competence of, women faculty, especially junior women faculty of color. So she helped me to anticipate some of the questions students are likely to ask. This kind of mentorship is incredibly unique, thoughtful, and, again, generous, and I am reminded constantly of how grateful I am that I met Cynthia through the Conference of Asian Pacific Law Faculty, and that she decided to take me—with many others—under her wing!”
Lee, who accepted the award via Zoom during the Oct. 25 conference, was “surprised, touched, and honored” at the news. She plans to continue fostering a culture of mentorship among faculty.
“It’s super important to have people you can go to for career advice, classroom advice, things that come up in the classroom,” Lee said. “A lot of times people think of mentors as a guru, the one person who is going to be your mentor and fix everything, but what I've learned over time is you might have many different mentors who you can turn to.”