Alumni Events

The Dr. Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander Conference is a celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Alexander, a true American pioneer. Dr. Alexander not only shattered glass ceilings for women and minorities, but also empowered those after her. She was the first African-American woman to graduate from Penn Law. She also had a Ph.D in economics from the University of Pennsylvania. In the spirit of Dr. Alexander, the annual conference continues her legacy by engaging with pertinent legal issues in hopes of getting closer to solutions, providing professional development opportunities for students, and giving back to the Philadelphia community.
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The Raymond Pace and Sadie T.M. Alexander Professorship in Civil Rights was established at Penn Law through an initial gift from the Alexander estate in 1993, and through the involvement of the Alexanders’ daughters, Dr. Rae Alexander-Minter GR’81, who played a pivotal role over the years in leading fundraising efforts, and Mary B. Cannaday. The Chair has been co-funded by the Law School, Penn, and through a grant by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and a gift from the law firm Duane Morris. The Alexander Chair allows Penn Law to hire a Professor whose primary focus would be on the issues of civil rights and civil liberties.
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In 1994, Penn Law BLSA established a Sadie T.M. Alexander Committee and each year since then has hosted an annual dinner and conference to support fundraising for the Chair, as well as celebrate the Alexanders’ lives and legacy. In total, more than 350 donors, including individual alumni, students, and faculty, as well as alumni groups, student groups, law firms, and corporations, have contributed to the establishment of the professorship.