Maya Fernandez-Powell

Maya Fernandez-Powell graduated from Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service with honors and earned a B.S. in Regional and Comparative Studies, a minor in French, and a certificate in Diplomatic Studies. She was awarded the Ernst H. Feilchenfeld Award for her research in the field of International Organization. She was captain of the varsity women’s soccer team and received the Stephanie Waterman Medal for most outstanding scholar-athlete. She also completed her M.A. at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies and received the Outstanding Student Award for the Master of Professional Studies in Applied Intelligence.

Before attending Georgetown Law, Maya worked for the NGO Human Rights First as a Human Rights Investigations Researcher. She specialized in the targeting of Human Rights Defenders, engaging with international HRDs to support their security and advocacy efforts. Much of her work focused on human rights violations in Ukraine, as well as in Hungary, Poland, and Northern Ireland. While at Human Rights First, she published several human rights reports, including a report on the situation facing human rights defenders in Hungary after traveling to the country to speak with lawyers and activists. Previously, she worked as a foreign affairs legislative intern for U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley on the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Following her first year of law school, Maya was a Pro Bono Scholar at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. She speaks French.