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  • STANFORD LAW SCHOOL, JD, 2009 

    • ​Case studies on community economic development, immigration, social entrepreneurship, education nonprofits, ADA, and History of American law 

    • Represented Stanford Law School before legal, business, and government leaders in China.

    • Formed deep relationships with current national progressive leaders

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  • TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY | Mandarin Language Fellow | Beijing, China                   2005 – 2006]

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  • STANFORD UNIVERSITY, BA in INTERNATIONAL ​RELATIONS, HONORS IN ETHICS, 2005

    • ​Coursework on “Religion and Social Justice: MLK+Rabbi A.J. Heschel”

    • Studied abroad in Seville, Spain 

    • Assistant editor at that’s Beijing magazine in China.    

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Photo Description: Posing as “Mr. May” for the Mensch of the Month calendar, an initiative benefiting an underprivileged youth tutoring nonprofit in California's East Bay

LEGAL RELATED EXPERIENCES

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  • During law school, in the early days (Spring 2007) of what became the Great Recession, I secured funding from Equal Justice America for an innovative fellowship to combat predatory lending, working closely with an attorney who formally served with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.  

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  • Along with fellow students, I represented our law school (including as resident Mandarin translator) as we met with Chinese government, business, and legal leaders in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Beijing (where the cab drivers sound strikingly similar to pirates with their “reflexive r”).  I also conducted case studies ranging from social entrepreneurship to immigration to rules of engagement for U.S. military contractors to a rhetorical analysis of Justice Jackson’s prosecution statement at the Nuremberg Nazi trial.

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  • As a law school summer associate at two world-prominent law firms, I worked on pro bono projects ranging from a Central American youth’s asylum case to an international weapons criminal conspiracy case (led by a former Kennedy Administration prosecutor) to post-conflict voter registration legal research.

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  • At the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs, a staffer told me to “Stop calling yourself an extern, you sound like you’re 12.” I heeded her advice and have since referred to my title there as a Legal Fellow.  I worked on issues from combating Somali pirates and international sex traffickers, to foreign policy speechwriting, to participating in staff meetings with a delegation from Pakistan discussing the War on Terror.

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  • As an associate at a global law firm known for pro bono advocacy, I read quite a few legal opinions, mostly to see how the characters turned out.  I also worked on an (ultimately successful) national class action on behalf of thousands of U.S. veterans who had been “human guinea pigs” in Cold War chemical and biological substance testing programs.  Serving as the main point of contact for veterans who called in from across the country to share their stories and learn about the case was a highlight, as was partnering with veterans nonprofits.  Conversations with them greatly informed my ultimate decision to pivot to the nonprofit sector.  

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  • Other legal related experiences included:

    • Deposing a VA official in D.C., landing six jokes “on the record” in the transcript

    • Preparing our Senior Partner for his interview with CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta

    • Conducting intake at a local VA clinic

    • Mentoring junior attorneys and law students, creating a unique Seinfeld training that also featured my grandma

    • Teaming with attorneys remotely + nationally 

    • Participating in firm foundation events, e.g., for an abused women’s shelter

Photo Description: With a law school friend, celebrating the work and legacy of MLK at his memorial in Washington, D.C.

NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE

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For 3+ years, I served as a “quasi Executive Director,” launching and managing a complex, innovative grassroots nonprofit initiative.  I recruited, trained, and supported 80 diverse leaders representing BIPOC, women, LGBTQIA+, immigrant, and disabled communities in relational organizing.  Via 100+ 1-on-1 coffee chats, I also sharpened my active listening skills.   With our talented leaders, we succeeded in systematizing practices to rapidly and responsibly scale from 0 to 1200 formerly “unengaged” community members.  

 

I also gained critical on-the-ground experience that now enables me to advise foundations, nonprofits, and other clients I serve with deep empathy, including:

 

  • Leading tactical and strategic (multi-year) planning

  • Working closely with C-Suite, HR, Program, Financial, and Communications/Marketing staff

  • Working closely with sector experts to define, track, analyze, and refine impact evaluation efforts

  • Crafting curricula for and facilitating monthly meetings, frequent events with several to 100s of attendees, and semi-annual retreats

  • Managing, mentoring, and coaching staff and volunteers, including interviewing, hiring, training, and evaluating performance

  • Presenting to nonprofit and foundation Board Members, as well as the public

  • Fundraising for sustainability, doubling the yearly program budget

  • Cultivating thought and program partnerships

  • With top tech talent, building innovative, remote systems and processes to increase efficiency while maintaining quality + accountability

  • Integrating DEI values into culture and policies

  • Attending professional development seminars (e.g., Stanford Nonprofit Management Institute, “Innovative Scaling + Impact”) and trips (e.g., to Germany, Cuba)

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