Korean Popstar In My Section And Diversity At Northwestern

My section has a lot of the really interesting people this year. It turns out that in addition to the 19-year old I recently posted about, I also sit next to a Korean pop star. Literally.  My section mate, who for now wishes to remain anonymous, graduated from a Korean University with a degree in English literature. And although she made her living as a performer overseas after graduation, she recently gave it all up for the chance to come to Northwestern Law and eventually change the world.

Since graduation, my section mate has been making a living by performing in Asia. Sounds like the good life, right? After all, don’t we all want to grow up to be pop stars! Well, despite loving her former career, she ultimately chose to come to Northwestern Law to become an international human rights lawyer, though I’ll note that she does also plan to continue performing after school. My classmate is a really great addition to the section, and we’ve already become library buddies during the first two weeks.

While having a pop star in my section is certainly unique, I think the general notion of having varied professional and ethnic backgrounds is old news to Northwestern Law, statistically the most diverse law school in the world. It’s also water under the bridge for top MBA programs, which constantly aim for as diverse a class as possible. In today’s professional community, diversity is the standard, so schools are trying to reflect that in their learning environments. Schools not only welcome, but they also embrace a student body enriched by various nationalities, cultures, interests, and points of view.

Practically speaking, the core of our learning model in law school, the Socratic method, continually reinforces this notion. In the Socratic Method, students must continually demonstrate the ability to work across boundaries. They must absorb multiple perspectives while still articulating their own views. They must also demonstrate the ability to work with and through other people. A capacity to confront a wide variety of issues, both legal and non legal. And the facility to build consensus amidst a variety of competing opinions and perspectives.

As law students, we by no means do any of this perfectly. However, the diversity here makes it a great place to learn many of these critical professional skills.

Friday, September 11th, 2009 Diversity, Law School

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2 Comments to Korean Popstar In My Section And Diversity At Northwestern

Abhishek
September 20, 2009

Hey Jeremy,

Is it Ms. So Eun Lee? If so, you should check out her albums 'Sinbi' and 'Think of Me'. It's incredible for an eighteen year old to come up with something like 'Sinbi'. Now this is what I call diversity, K-pop singer and human rights lawyer. An inspiration, indeed.

Jeremy
September 20, 2009

@Abhishek–Hey Abhishek, thanks for writing. Sounds like you are familiar with Asians musicians. I'll definitely have to look out for those albums in the next few days.

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Jeremy C Wilson is a JD-MBA alumni using his site to share information on education, the social enterprise revolution, entrepreneurship, and doing things differently. Feel free to send along questions or comments as you read.

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The contents of this blog are mine personally and do not reflect the views or position of Kellogg, Northwestern Law, the JD-MBA program, or any firm that I work for. I only offer my own perspective on all issues.
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