WASHINGTON, D.C. â€“ U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) tonight attended the 24th annual Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) Awards Gala where she presented the organizationâ€™s Stewardship Award to prominent Indian American Preeta Bansal.

Bansal worked in the Obama Administration as General Counsel and Senior Policy Adviser to the Office of Management and Budget, and she served as New York Stateâ€™s Solicitor General. She also served on the Obama-Biden transition, and was a member of the Administrative Conference of the United States, and Chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

â€œIâ€™m honored to present the APAICS Stewardship Award to Solicitor General Preeta Bansal for her leadership in public service, and for her efforts to empower communities,â€ said Meng. â€œAsian Pacific American Heritage Month is a time to honor and celebrate the AAPI communityâ€™s many accomplishments. Tonight, we recognize and celebrate Preeta for her immense contributions, and for her service and leadership to our community and the nation.â€

The Stewardship Award is presented to individuals committed to serving their communities, and who are leaders among AAPIs in public service.

Bansal is presently the CEO of Social Emergence Corporation, a social-benefit, not-for-profit corporation that focuses on empowering communities. She is also a lecturer at the MIT Media Lab and a Senior Advisor at MITâ€™s Laboratory for Social Machines.

APAICS holds its annual awards ceremony during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month to celebrate AAPI leaders who have positive impacts in their professional careers and communities. APAICS is a national non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting Asian Pacific American participation and representation at all levels of the political process, from community service to elected office.

Meng presents APAICS STEWARDSHIP award to prominent Indian American Preeta Bansal