Leading with kindness

Suet Lee, president of the Student Bar Association (SBA), ran on a platform of student government experience and a promise to lead with kindness. But Lee says the most important attribute that made her a strong candidate was her enthusiasm for the school itself.

“I really treasure the Loyola Law community,” Lee says. “I’ve met a lot of great, supportive people who have become my role models. Watching my friends take on leadership roles in moot court, mock trial, and other student organizations inspires me. 

Among Lee’s most important mentors are the two immediate past SBA presidents, Jahnee’ Hughes and Mikaila John. During Hughes’ tenure, Lee served as an SBA 1L representative; the following year, she held the director of communications position under John’s leadership. Lee is the fourth nonwhite woman in four years to helm the SBA.

“I found a sense of belonging through SBA, and that was thanks in part to Jahnee’ and Mikaila,” Lee says. “One of the main reasons I ran for this position was to provide that community belonging experience for others.”

While Lee is focused on creating a community for everyone, she’s especially interested in providing resources and support for students in need—a term that Lee sees broadly. Maybe it’s a student from out-of-state looking to establish Chicago roots. Or it could be a Weekend JD student with a family hoping to connect with other single moms. Then there are students who worry about not having a professional network to tap into. Lee wants all these future lawyers to feel like Loyola Law is where they belong. And she’s determined to make that happen through SBA activities.

Those activities include 1L/2L and 3L mentorship programs (Lee herself mentors two 1Ls), Diversity Week, social events like Barrister’s Ball, opportunities to serve the wider Chicagoland region and committee positions that work with the school’s administration.

Lee thrives on a busy schedule. In addition to overseeing the SBA, she is the senior editor and managing editor of IP Bytes, an executive editor of the International Law Review and a Thomas Tang Moot Court National Semifinalist.

As a biology major at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Lee pursued a variety of extracurriculars, including working as a research assistant in a lab that had patented stem cells. That experience, and an interest in Loyola’s Health Justice Project, led her to the School of Law.

““I’ve met a lot of great, supportive people who have become my role models.”

“The intellectual property program is run by Professor Cynthia Ho, and seeing an Asian woman professor in this field just really excited me,” Lee says, adding that Professor Ho’s Introduction to IP course was one of her favorites.

After graduation, Lee will begin a first-year associate position at an IP litigation firm in Chicago.

“I’m just very thankful for everyone at Loyola and within SBA who has led by example, encouraged me to get involved and helped me get outside my comfort zone,” Lee says. “Those were really important things for me to do before I step into my career.” –Kelsey Schagemann (October 2022)