Harold and Howard Koh clearly come from an intellectual family—they and their four other siblings all hold teaching positions at U.S. universities. So it may not have been a complete surprise that they would both be nominated for key positions in the administration of President Barack Obama.

The brothers were born as U.S. citizens in Connecticut to mother Chun He-sung and the late Koh. Kwang-lim. Harold Koh, currently Dean of the Yale Law School, was nominated to be legal advisor for the State Department on March 23, while Howard Koh, Associate Dean for Public Health Practice at the Department of Health and Management at Harvard University, was nominated two days later to become Assistant Health Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services. Both are now awaiting congressional confirmation.

A legal adviser to the State Department acts as the primary source of legal advice for all matters, both domestic and international, that might arise. In this position, Harold Koh would be an important voice in the formulation of U.S. foreign policy, particularly when international law and institutions need to be taken into consideration. He would oversee an office of state department attorneys who work on some of the most challenging legal issues facing America. These include humanitarian efforts, trade and treaty disputes, international security, and peace accords, to name a few.

The Assistant Health Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for overseeing activities of the United State Public Health Service, the main division of the department. In this position, Howard Koh would confront issues such as disease prevention, medical innovation, and the rules and regulations of the Food and Drug Administration.

A spirit of service seems to run in the Koh family. Their late father, Koh Kwang-lim was a former diplomat for Korea who served in the United States until a coup overturned the Korean government.

When Koh spoke out against the uprising, he lost favor and was unable to return home. He eventually received U.S. citizenship and settled in New Haven, Connecticut where he raised his six children.

By Garrett Harkins