Mike and Kris DeAngelo,
Husband-and-Wife King Scholars

First one earns a degree, then the other. That’s how Mike and Kris DeAngelo have approached their education in the law.

BY PATRICIA MAJHER After a brief career in medical research, Mike came to MSU-DCL to pursue his JD in 1994. A year’s worth of credits later—earned with a 3.96 grade point average—he joined the first group of students to receive Dean Charles H. King Fellowships. “It was an honor to be chosen,” said Mike, “and I sure appreciated the full ride.” Mike and Kris DeAngelo with Michigan Supreme Court Justice Marilyn Kelly, center. King Scholars have their own academic advisor, take a special course in jurisprudence, and participate in get-togethers with practicing attorneys to discuss trends and new perspectives in the law. It was at one of these gatherings when Mike’s wife Kris decided she wanted to be a lawyer, too. “I knew his professors; I helped him study,” Kris said. “I just thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great to get my law degree, too, and set up a practice together?’” After talking it over, the couple decided that Mike would complete his education first and then support Kris in her efforts. The transition went smoothly, with Mike graduating from MSU-DCL in April 1998 (spending his last semester in East Lansing) and Kris starting in August of the same year. While Mike was establishing himself in a pre-hearing position at the Michigan Court of Appeals, Kris was busy building an impressive transcript of good grades. Within a year, she was named the family’s second King Scholar. Like Mike, she has opted to work full time—teaching biology and chemistry to Novi High School students during the day—and go to school at night. She loves the nighttime atmosphere at the law school: “It’s very collegial, very friendly. We’re all in the same boat, schedule-wise.” In addition to her regular studies, she must complete a formal paper—a requirement of her King Fellowship. Her subject? Emerging search and seizure rulings. “The paper then gets put on file in the library so others can read it and offer their comments,” she explained. Kris expects to graduate in Spring 2002. In the meantime, Mike—who’s since tried his hand at general counsel work and estate and tax planning—is back at the Michigan Court of Appeals working as a senior researcher and busy studying for the patent bar exam. “Patent law is a way for me to combine my science background [a BS in cellular and molecular biology] with my legal training,” he said. In the midst of their busy lives, the DeAngelos try to make time for themselves. “We meet every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for dinner at Jimmy Johns [sandwich shop] near the law school,” said Kris with a smile. “That’s something!” Next summer, they hope to take a bit of a breather from law school—“it’s been eight long years between the two of us,” noted Kris—and finish the “new” addition to their house, begun in 1998.