Joseph Kemp, MBA/JD ’22: Creating Games That Matter

A passion for sharing knowledge

As a first-generation college student, Kemp chased his dreams with determination and hard work. After earning an undergraduate degree in philosophy at John Jay College, Kemp went on to pursue three graduate degrees simultaneously: a JD and MBA at the University of Michigan Law School and Ross School of Business and an MS in Education from the University of Pennsylvania.

“While earning those degrees, I developed a passion that stemmed from me being a first-gen college grad and seeing the challenges along the way,” Kemp said. “Gaining all this knowledge kind of sparked a passion in me to really provide insights to the people like me climbing up the ladder.”

One moment in particular gave Kemp an unexpected spark of inspiration: studying for the bar exam. As he studied relentlessly in hopes of passing and obtaining a license to practice law, Kemp wished there was an easier way to learn all the test material.

“Studying for the bar exam is, quite frankly, not a fun process,” he laughed. “I wished there was a way to gamify learning for the bar as opposed to me just sitting there every day for five to seven hours just taking in information.”

Developing Games That Matter

Kemp realized that his desire to find a way to gamify studying for the bar exam was actually a potential opportunity—one that could combine his passions for education, law, and business.

“I always knew that I would be some sort of founder in the future, though I didn’t know of what,” Kemp said. “What we ended up developing was a card game, Disbarred, which is the first legal-themed party game where serious learning meets serious fun. Think of it as a G-rated Cards Against Humanity with a legal twist.”

Kemp funded his idea through a successful Kickstarter campaign, which met its funding goal in under a month with more than 40 project backers. As of January 2025, the game is now available for pre-order. Staying true to his original goal for the game to help law students studying for the bar, Kemp decided to donate a portion of the proceeds for each box of Disbarred sold to organizations supporting pre-law and law students in need.

“I wanted to help law students with anything from applications to LSAT costs. So that's kind of the big deal with this; we're able to empower the public, essentially, and help students in need to get into a profession that's not always easy to break into because there's a lot of different barriers in terms of financial knowledge gaps and other hurdles,” Kemp said.

After the success of Disbarred, Kemp decided to explore the possibility of creating similar games to help students in other areas, like the medical field or even business. To do so, he launched his own limited liability company, Games That Matter, which he is working on alongside his other business, JMK & Co., a consulting firm focused on student and startup services.

Forbes “30 Under 30” and the Michigan Ross connection

For his work on Games That Matter, Kemp was recently featured in the Forbes 2025 “30 Under 30” list in the games category. He joins a growing list of Michigan Ross alums who have been featured, including 2024 recipients Komal Sankla, BBA ’17, and Sikander “Sonny” Khan, BBA ’20.

“I think for me personally, it was a big deal because it's a major recognition for an idea that I had and it's a little surreal,” Kemp said. “Now, I've been propelled into different spaces and new opportunities to connect with other founders doing big things in the world, especially those in my category of games. It was great validation that I'm on the right path.”

For the skills and knowledge it took to get a Forbes-recognized business off the ground, Kemp credits his experiences as a triple-degree graduate student, particularly at Michigan Ross.

“Business school really gave me the confidence to pursue my own path. I had a lot of ideas during my undergrad for student clubs and things like that I could start, but I was fearful of pursuing them because I was navigating uncharted waters,” Kemp said. “Going to Ross really gave me that push I needed, and that led to me creating several clubs on campus that are still running today and the businesses that I'm engaged in.”

During his time at Ross, Kemp utilized many resources and participated in a number of extracurricular activities, including the Wolverine eSports and Gaming Association and Startup Consulting Program, formerly known as Michigan Venture Consulting (part of the Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital Club at Ross), both of which he helped create. He was also heavily involved with the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, a Ross-based institute that helps students across U-M nurture their entrepreneurial goals.

“I have to thank Mike Johnson, who runs the Zell Lurie Commercialization Fund, and Professor Marcus Collins. Their classes were pivotal to everything I have done,” Kemp said.

Goals for the future

As a founder and CEO balancing his consulting business and new gaming-centric LLC, Kemp is looking to the future to decide what’s next.

“I definitely want to expand these companies, with the long-term goal of making them household names. Later on, I also hope to create a non-profit to help eradicate some of the knowledge and wealth gaps in this country,” Kemp said. “As for the short term, careers are so dynamic, I couldn’t tell you what my next year will look like. I didn’t expect any of this. But I think one of my big goals is to see Games That Matter on the shelves in physical stores and other opportunities to promote our mission.”

When asked what he would tell other aspiring entrepreneurs, Kemp’s advice was simple: go for it.

“Everything is scary. It's always gonna be a mountain that you climb, even after you actually go for it and do it. There will be more mountains and more summits to reach. But just go for it, have the confidence, and look at what your peers have done while there, look at what everyone else is doing, to give you the confidence of ‘okay, if they took that kind of risk, I can too,’” Kemp said.

Nothing is a failure because everything is a learning opportunity.