A civil rights lawyer preparing for a new position with Howard University’s law school died in Wednesday evening’s plane crash at Reagan National Airport.
Already working in D.C. for quite some time, Kiah Duggins was a shining light who worked to build equitable communities and fight for justice, those who knew her said.
“Kiah was all the things,” said Bobby Gandu, associate vice president for strategic enrollment management, applied learning and director of admissions of Wichita State University, from which Duggins graduated. “Kiah was really bright, asked incredible questions.”
Duggins had a knack for standing up for marginalized communities – most recently in the District.
Duggins was on the way back from Kansas, her home state.
“She was a person who wanted to make sure that we were taking care of people who didn’t have a voice, who maybe needed some representation,” Gandu said.
He successfully recruited Duggins to attend Wichita State.
“She was really funny, too,” he said. “She always had something comical to say. She would bring light to a room. She was incredibly intelligent, of course, meaning that she would challenge us to think of things in a different way.”
Before her career blossomed, Duggins graduated from Harvard Law School and participated in former first lady Michelle Obama’s Let Girls Learn initiative.
“I wrote in my recommendation that I hope someday my then 1-year-old daughter would be inspired and mentored by someone like Kiah Duggins,” Gandu said.
Duggins’ parents sent a statement to NBC News, saying, “We are coming to terms with the grief associated with the loss of our beautiful and accomplished firstborn.”
