Wendy B. Scott, the first African-American to serve as dean of the Mississippi College School of Law, will deliver the keynote address at Jackson State University’s fall graduate commencement. The ceremony will begin at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 11, 2015, in the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center.
Millard Juette Bingham, Ph.D., commencement committee co-chair and interim associate dean of JSU’s College of Education and Human Development, said, “The commencement committee has been working diligently to ensure a program that is worthy of our students’ achievements. We are honored to have Dean Scott as our graduate commencement speaker as she exemplifies the outstanding leadership qualities we seek to develop in JSU students. In addition to being the first African-American to be named dean of the MC School of Law, she is only the second woman to hold this distinction. Our graduates are thrilled to have her as their commencement speaker.”
Furthermore, Bingham said, “We know that our graduates will make the university proud as they go forth and lead the next generation of scholars, and we believe that they will be inspired by Dean Scott’s message.”
Although she made headlines after being named dean of the law school on August 11, 2014, Scott has been a prominent and influential voice in the field of law for more than two decades. Scott earned a bachelor of arts degree from Harvard University and a juris doctorate from New York University School of Law. She taught for eight years at North Carolina Central University School of Law, where she served as associate dean for Academic Affairs from 2009 to 2012. Before joining North Carolina Central, she taught 17 years at Tulane Law School in New Orleans, where she served as vice dean for Academic Affairs.
Early in her career, Scott practiced employment law while working as a staff attorney at the Legal Action Center of the City of New York; worked as an associate at Vladeck, Waldman, Elias and Engelhard in New York City; and directed litigation while serving as the associate counsel for the Center for Law and Social Justice in Brooklyn, N.Y.
A distinguished lawyer, teacher, legal scholar, administrator and community leader, she is recognized as a national expert on race law and constitutional law and theory. She has conducted extensive scholarship on constitutional theory and school desegregation, and her work on the desegregation of public colleges and universities has been widely cited. She has been published in diverse professional journals, including the Harvard Law Review, Emory Law Journal, University of Tennessee Law Review, Tulane Law Review, Howard Law Journal, Villanova Law Review and Wake Forest Law Review. She is a member of the New York Bar Association and has been admitted to practice in the United States Supreme Court.
In addition to her many noteworthy professional accomplishments, Scott has faithfully served alongside her husband, the Rev. Eddie Scott, in a number of positions within Baptist institutions. They are the parents of Christian Scott, who will graduate from high school in 2017.
Prominent music industry executive Kevin Liles, founder and CEO of KWL Management, partner in 300 Entertainment and founder of RSM Sports Management Group, will speak at Jackson State University’s fall undergraduate commencement. It will begin at 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 11, 2015, in the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center.
During the fall graduate commencement, 180 candidates for graduation will be recognized. For more information, visit commencement.