The Morgan Lewis Foundation awarded GW Law student Jordan Jean, a rising 2L, a Diversity Scholarship.
Mr. Jean is one of eight recipients of the diversity scholarship this year. The grants, typically $40,000 per student, are provided in four installments at the beginning of each semester of the recipients’ second and third years of law school.
“Being awarded the Morgan Lewis Foundation Diversity Scholarship award means so many things to me, but one thing that I would say is that the scholarship helps chip away the anxiety surrounding the affordability of legal education,” Mr. Jean said. “The scholarship has recharged my spirit to serve my community, ensuring that I pave a path while extending an olive branch to those that are to follow.”
Mr. Jean said he was inspired by his mother and grandmother to pursue higher education.
"I come from a West Indian background where my mother and my grandmother taught me the importance of an education, often reminding me that no one can ever take that away from you," he said.
Diversity, he said, is more than just checking a box. After graduating from Howard University, Mr. Jean said he had a completely different perspective of what diversity means.
“Diversity looms all around us. A lot of people think diversity just speaks to race or sexual orientation, but diversity goes way beyond that,” Mr. Jean said. “It goes to your political thinking, how you were raised, your religious beliefs.”
Mr. Jean split his summer between Venable and Brown Advisory. He worked on corporate and litigation matters, pro bono cases, and contracts, getting real hands-on experience. Mr. Jean has accepted an offer from Venable to return next summer and is excited to work to a firm with such a"strong commitment to diversity to further gain the necessary skills I need to become a successful attorney."
At GW Law, he is focusing on the transactional aspects of corporate law. While he came into law school wanting to pursue litigation, Mr. Jean said he was inspired to explore other avenues of law through the encouragement of mentors like Professor Arthur E. Wilmarth, Jr.
“Professor Arthur Wilmarth had the most profound impact on me when looking at how I wanted to proceed. I was coming in to meet with him for office hours, and he sat down and talked with me and gave me insights into his career,” Mr. Jean said. “He made transactional law come alive for me.”
He currently serves as a Senator to the Robert Jackson Inn and was elected as the Chair of the Finance Committee for the Student Bar Association. Mr. Jean also serves as Chair of Alumni Relations for the Black Law Student Association and is working to build a network of individuals to mentor students from 1Ls to 3Ls.
The Morgan Lewis Foundation is an independent 501(c)(3) organization that awards academic scholarship established by global law firm Morgan Lewis. The scholarship award is one way Morgan Lewis is showing its commitment to diversity and inclusion, influencing how the firm serves clients, collaborates with colleagues, recruits prospective lawyers and professional staff, and engages with local communities.