On March 5, 2015, MSJDN Member Angelica Kang received the prestigious “Woman of Inspiration” Award from Ms. JD at its “Ms. JD: Stronger Together” conference in San Francisco, California.
Angelica Kang poses with her “Woman of Inspiration” Award in San Francisco, California on March 5, 2015. Photo courtesy of Angelica Kang.
Angelica is a law student in Fordham University’s evening division and expects to earn her J.D. in May 2016. While in law school, Angelica is working full-time as a paralegal, with a particular focus in assisting individuals impacted by Superstorm Sandy through the New York Legal Assistance’s Storm Response Unit. Angelica developed a passion for helping others when serving in the Peace Corps in Senegal.
Angelica is a founding member of MSJDN and serves on the Membership Committee. On that Committee, she has led the efforts to identify the needs of military spouse law students and create programs and offerings to serve our members from the very start of their military spouse attorney journey. Angelica’s experience and leadership in MSJDN demonstrates how important it is to have participation from diverse perspectives.
Angelica shared her thoughts about receiving the Woman of Inspiration Award, echoing the value of diverse leadership and representation:
“The evening was an incredible experience for me. Growing up Chinese American in suburban New Jersey, I never witnessed an Asian female recognized for any type of achievement. So certainly I never knew any Asian female lawyers and even now, as a law student in NYC, I know very few. So it was a very poignant moment for me to be the first Asian American female I witnessed being recognized for her work.
Secondly, I took an untraditional path to get to a legal career, I don’t approach law school traditionally, and I don’t plan on practicing traditionally. These choices often result in sleepless nights as I worry about if I’ve made the right choices. This award is an affirmation of those decisions to defy the status quo and keep on following my desire to rethink and reinvent how lawyers approach public interest.
I am so grateful for MSJDN for its support and nomination. I never anticipated that marrying into the Marine Corps would lead me to a community of such incredible, strong, and interesting people who encourage each other to achieve and demand more for ourselves.”
This lesson is also true for military spouse attorneys. For military spouse attorneys just embarking on their legal careers or their military marriages, seeing the successes of our members being recognized on a national level is inspiring and energizing. We are so grateful to have amazing members like Angelica whose contributions and leadership continue to move our missions forward.
MSJDN nominated Angelica for the “Woman of Inspiration” Award pursuant to the Awards Nomination Policy. If you know a MSJDN Member (including yourself!) who is eligible for an upcoming award, please submit nominations to the Awards Committee by emailing awards@msjdn.org.
