A Mother’s Example

Medard did not initially see law as a preferable profession. Growing up, she first imagined a future in medicine. Her mother, an attorney, provided her with a more grounded view of the legal field: one defined less by prestige than by trust, responsibility, and service.

That perspective sharpened when Medard interned at her mother’s law office and accompanied her to court and client meetings. She watched clients turn to her mother not only as counsel but as confidant, relying on her voice when their own felt unheard.

“Wow, my mom really means so much to these people,” Medard recalled observing. “My mom is really making a difference in these people’s lives.”

That realization helped Medard see that law could be a vehicle for the instincts she always carried: speaking up for others, noticing who had been overlooked, and insisting that vulnerable people be heard.

By the time she arrived at Howard Law, she was not simply preparing for a career. She was stepping into a tradition. Howard Law, Medard said, taught her that the law is “not just something to be mastered,” but something that can be translated, challenged, and used in service of those too often excluded from legal advocacy.

Becoming a ‘Social Engineer’

At Howard Law, Medard embraced one of the school’s defining ideals: that lawyers are not only practitioners, but “social engineers,” as quoted by legendary HUSL dean Charles Hamilton Houston. For her, that concept has become both a professional compass and a personal charge.

“Howard Law trains you to be a social engineer and more than a lawyer,” she said. “It offers combinations of legitimate, rigorous legal training that you could get anywhere else, and then also a commitment to social justice, community advocacy, and impact.”

Medard found that mission especially alive in the Movement Lawyering Clinic, taught by Professor Justin Hansford (B.A. ’03). She enrolled in the clinic twice, describing it as a formative experience that helped her connect theory to practice and imagine the law as a tool for collective liberation.

That sense of social engineering now shapes Medard’s long-term vision. After graduation, she will begin her career in private practice, but her ambitions extend well beyond traditional markers of legal success. She hopes one day to build a reentry-centered educational network for formerly and wrongfully incarcerated people, transforming abandoned college campuses into spaces of learning, mentorship, and rehabilitation.

Her theory of change is rooted in relationship building. She imagines students, professionals, artists, and advocates helping people re-enter society with dignity and support.

“There are so many men and women who go into the prison system and come out with real knowledge that they didn’t have before,” she noted. “My goal is to start to rehabilitate them with young people who want to make a difference.”

Medard is clear-eyed about the realities of debt, capital, and career building. She also understands that influence can be accumulated and then redirected toward a greater purpose. Howard, she said, gave her the language and training to see that path more clearly.

[Howard Law] offers combinations of legitimate, rigorous legal training that you could get anywhere else, and then also a commitment to social justice, community advocacy, and impact.

Pride, Purpose, and Plans

Medard credits her support system with helping her remain well-balanced amidst the law school crucible. A proud New Yorker, she stayed close to home, friends, and family throughout her time at Howard.

During her 1L year, when finals kept her from returning to New York for Thanksgiving, one friend traveled from Long Island to Washington, D.C., carrying trays of food, so Medard would not miss the comforts of home.

“Even thinking about that just brings me so much joy,” she smiled.

Those gestures sustained her. So did the realization that law school, while demanding, was not the entirety of life. Medard learned to protect her mental health and keep a proper perspective.

“Everyone thinks that it’s that black and white, when it’s really not,” she said. “You can always try to find that middle ground. That’s what I was able to do, and that was really helpful for me.”

But perhaps her greatest takeaway from Howard was a deepened sense of identity. Medard said Howard Law gave her a fuller understanding of Blackness, community, and belonging. She found herself surrounded by the breadth of Black experience — classmates with diverse backgrounds, passions, and ways of engaging with the world.

“I am so proud to be who I am,” Medard said. “I’m so proud to be Black. I’m so proud to be a Howard alumna.”

That pride will accompany her into the next stage of her journey. Following graduation, Medard will sit for the bar exam this summer before returning to Boies Schiller Flexner in New York. In 2028, she will clerk for a federal judge in the Eastern District of New York. After that, she is considering a path that may include the U.S. Department of Justice, a pivot to private practice, or whatever opportunity best positions her to achieve her ultimate goal.

Wherever she goes, Medard will carry Howard Law’s imprint with her: the belief that legal scholarship and practice must be animated by service, history, and the pursuit of justice.