I am thrilled to have been nominated to run for an elected Director position on AILA’s Board of Governors (BOG) in 2017! I have a long record of dedicated service to AILA and would like to serve on the BOG. In this new era of heightened immigration enforcement, I want to

continue to contribute to AILA’s advancement of quality immigration representation to zealously defend immigrants, and by extension the communities they are a part of.

Active participation in and service to AILA has enabled me to grow as an immigration attorney and as a leader in our community. I have spent 5 years on the National ICE Liaison Committee and currently serve as its Chair, giving me significant institutional memory with respect to the agency. ICE is central to the national debate about immigration, and I am well equipped to continue to share my knowledge and provide insight into the challenges we continue to face.

I endeavor towards inclusive leadership. When drafting liaison agendas and meeting with ICE, I make sure the committee addresses as many member concerns as possible. To get information to members quickly, I prepare practice advisories and QuickTakes, and when members contact me, I’m eager to assist and share resources. I believe that a key aspect of liaison is nurturing a constructive relationship between AILA’s membership and the agency. We need to keep the agencies talking to us. As Chair of the ICE Liaison Committee, I work to foster dialogue with agency leadership. Ongoing communication is key to keeping members apprised of what is happening so we can best advocate for our clients’ interests.

In addition to my work on the ICE Liaison Committee, I have made quality continuing legal education a priority for our members. I served on the 2017 planning committees for AILA’s Midwinter and Spring conferences, and look forward to helping with this year’s Fall conference. I am also embarking on my third year with the committee planning Ohio AILA’s annual fall conference. Aside from conference planning, I regularly speak at local, regional, and national conferences. This year I presented in St. Maarten, Cleveland, OH, Chicago, IL, and Washington, DC, and I look forward to presenting at the Upper Midwest Conference in Brooklyn Center, MN, and the Annual Conference in New Orleans, LA.

This past year I: received AILA’s President’s Commendation Award; was a member of AILA’s Hostile Jurisdictions Working Group; volunteered at Citizenship Days; spent a week at the family detention center in Dilley, TX assisting women and children throughout the credible fear interview process; and gave Know Your Rights presentations to various community organizations. Since the election, I have maintained close contact with various community organizations and several colleges to keep them apprised of changes under the new administration. I have also been featured regularly in various media regarding the status of prosecutorial discretion and changes to ICE policies.

My practice is diverse and includes complex removal defense, employment based immigration for skilled professionals, family based immigration, asylum, and naturalization. My experience has taught me that the success of a case is directly tied to the effort put into it. I have learned that push back from the government often means you have to push back harder and smarter to advance your client’s case towards a positive result. This is as true in business and family cases as it is in litigation.

I am passionate about the work we do as immigration attorneys and I believe AILA is vital to the effective representation of clients, fair administration of the law by government, and advocacy for change. I hope to have the opportunity to serve AILA’s membership on the Board of Governors.

Heather Prendergast AILA Board Of Governors

Thank you in advance for your consideration. Feel free to contact me with questions at 216.352.3452 and hmdprendergast@gmail.com.

Here is a concise summary of my immigration background and AILA involvement:

• AILA Involvement • Member since 2010; • Chair, AILA ICE Liaison Committee, December 2015 to present; • Vice Chair, AILA ICE Liaison Committee, 2014 to 2015; • Member, AILA ICE Liaison Committee, 2012 to 2014; • Member, AILA 2017 Midwinter Conference Planning Committee; • Member, AILA 2017 Fall Conference Planning Committee; • Member, AILA 2017 & 2018 Spring Conference Planning Committee; • Member, Ohio AILA CLE Conference Planning Committee, 2015 to present; • Member, AILA’s Hostile Jurisdictions Working Group Fall 2016; • AILA CLE Programs:

• Speaker on removal, litigation, and government agency issues at the Annual Conference, Midwinter Conference, Spring Conference, regional, and local conferences;

• Recipient of AILA President’s Commendation Award, 2016

• Volunteer Activities • Citizenship Days at Legal Aid; • Week at Dilley in October 2016; and • Know Your Rights presentations to various community organizations

• 2017 AILA Speaking Engagements • Fundamentals of a Master Calendar Hearing (DL), AILA Annual Conference, New

Orleans, LA, June 21 – 24, 2017 • ICE Open Forum (DL), AILA Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA, June 21 – 24, 2017 • Immigration Court Practice in an Age of New Detention Priorities, AILA Upper Midwest

Immigration Conference, Brooklyn Center, MN, May 19, 2017 • ICE Open Forum (DL), AILA Spring Conference, Washington, DC, April 7, 2017 • How to Get Your Client Out of Custody, AILA Immigration Court Crash Course,

Washington, DC, March 24, 2017 • Circuit Court and BIA Update, Chicago AILA Midwest Regional Conference, Chicago, IL,

March 13, 2017 • Get Me Out of Here! Strategies for Getting Clients Out of Custody, AILA Audio Seminar,

March 7, 2017 • Finding the Lifeline in a Turbulent Sea: Prosecutorial Discretion for the Challenging

Case, AILA Midwinter Conference, Phillipsburg, St. Maarten, January 20, 2017

• Diverse Immigration Practice • Removal defense; • Waivers; • Federal court litigation; • Naturalization; • Asylum; • Family; • Business immigration for skilled professionals; and • Consular matters