Stewart Kwoh

In June 1998, Stewart Kwoh was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow. He is the first Asian American attorney and human rights activist to receive this highly prestigious recognition, often referred to as a “genius” grant.

Stewart Kwoh is the President and Executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California (APALC). Under Kwoh's leadership, the APALC has become the largest and most diverse legal assistance and civil rights organization targeting Asian Pacific Americans in the United States. He is also Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (NAPALC), which was co-founded by APALC in 1991. The NAPALC is the country's first national pan Asian civil rights organization.

Stewart Kwoh earned his Bachelor of Arts at UCLA and his Juris Doctorate degree from the UCLA Law School. He was a grader for the California State Bar Exam and has been President of the Southern California Chinese Lawyers Association. He is also an instructor at UCLA for a course of Asian Americans and the Law.

Having grown up in Los Angeles, Stewart Kwoh has actively pursued interests in a wide range of community issues. He has been a steering committee member of the Coalition for Humane Immigration Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA) and has been appointed board member of the City of Los Angeles Charter Reform Commission. He was also on the executive committee of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council, which is a coalition of 50 human service programs.

Stewart is very active with foundations, other philanthropic organizations, and nonprofit organization. He has been Chair of the Board of Directors (2000-2002) of The
California Endowment, which is the largest health foundation in California. He is one of the first Asian Americans to chair the board of a large foundation in the U.S. He is a trustee of the Methodist Urban Foundation, The California Wellness Foundation, and The Fannie Mae Foundation. He serves on the board of the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, as well as on the boards of a public television station, KCET, and a public radio station, SCPR.

Due to his extensive involvement, Stewart Kwoh has received Lawyer of the Year recognition by the California Lawyer magazine in 1998, and was named one of the top 100 most influential Asian Americans of the decade by A magazine in 1999. He has been a recipient of many awards including: Mayor’s Award, L.A. City Human Relations Commission, 1996; CORO Public Affairs Award in 1993; and the ACLU Award in 1993.