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Jessica Mayo
The Migrant and Immigrant Community Action Project (MICA Project) was founded in 2011 by law students Nicole Cortés and Jessica Mayo.  Through their work in the nonprofit immigration field, they observed surplus need for low-cost immigration legal services.

The MICA Project utilizes a combination of community outreach and legal services to promote the voice and dignity of immigrant communities. 

​The MICA Project’s combined approach addresses the surplus need for immigration legal services in immigrant communities by taking a proactive approach, providing immigrants with the information and resources they need before legal issues arise.  
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Since the organization's founding, the MICA Project has worked with hundreds of individuals and families in the St. Louis region, and has expanded to a total staff of eight full-time employees, with many interns and volunteers.  The MICA Project now has two attorneys, three Accredited Representatives, a director of Client Support Services, and other support staff.
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Nicole Cortés

​Legal Services

The MICA Project handles a wide variety of cases, including family, naturalization, removal defense, asylum & refugee issues. 

In certain types of cases, individuals with an attorney are four to six times more likely to win their case. We strive to work with our clients, making sure they understand and are involved in every step of the process to work towards a positive outcome.​

We strive to make our services accessible for low-income clients because we believe access to legal services is a basic component of the American commitment to justice.  
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​Community Outreach

The MICA Project has the long-term goal of clients utilizing their confidence, skills, and legal status to become leaders in their communities.  With the benefits of the MICA Project’s representation and educational outreach, clients are better able to become engaged in advocating for systemic change.  ​

Another way that our organization serves immigrants is by offering collaborative presentations for members of the non-immigrant community. In this way, non-immigrants are to learn more about the issues and topics around the immigration process which allows for growth as individuals and as a community. This community strength is particularly healing when families are facing the devastating effects of immigration enforcement and racial discrimination.