http://www.upenn.edu/almanac/v49/n02...alexander.html
Honoring Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander: A Role Model for Future Generations of Students
In a tribute to a woman whose lists of personal and professional achievements are unparalleled, the Penn-Assisted School is now officially The Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander University of Pennsylvania Partnership School. The School Reform Commission passed a resolution in August approving the name.
The neighborhood PreK-8 university-assisted public school was created through the collaboration of Penn, the School District and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, and serves a diverse catchment area with families from nearly 20 countries.
Dr. Alexander was a pioneer for African-American women, blazing educational and professional trails, and a role model for anyone striving to end prejudice and discrimination.
"I am very pleased that the School Reform Commission agreed with our recommendation to have our school named after a woman of great recognition," said Sheila A. Sydnor, the school principal. "Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander exemplified true leadership, perseverance and dedication to our city and our country. Our students will know and emulate the values of this great lawyer, educator and pioneer as they pursue their education. Mrs. Alexander will serve as the role model for all who will cross our threshold."
Born in 1898 into a family whose members had fought discrimination and segregation in Canada, Wales and the U.S., Dr. Alexander was the first African-American woman to earn a doctorate in economics, not only at Penn, but also in the nation. She was also the first African-American woman to enroll in law school at Penn and earn a law degree, the first African-American woman to pass the bar and to practice law in Pennsylvania.
"She had to be better than the very best," said Jerry Jordan, vice president of the PFT. "She had a lot of obstacles to overcome. She's going to be a great role model for the children who attend the school."
President Harry S. Truman appointed Dr. Alexander to the President's Committee on Civil Rights, whose report, To Secure These Rights, served as the foundation of the civil rights movement in America and was the basis for future civil rights policy decisions and legislation. President Jimmy Carter appointed her chairperson of the White House Conference on Aging, charged with addressing a range of social and economic needs of the elderly.
"There is no more fitting tribute to my mother than to name this newly created and state-of-the-art public school in her honor," said Rae Alexander-Minter, Ed.D., speaking for the family. "Sadie Alexander's life and work and her love of education will serve as a model of excellence and high achievement for all the students who attend and graduate from the Alexander School. May education and learning be central to their lives and work and move them forward to lives of personal and academic fulfillment," she said.
The school opens this fall for grades PreK-2 and 5-6 in a newly constructed 83,000 square feet, $19 million building that can accommodate up to 650 students in 28 classrooms. Clustered in modules, the classrooms overlook a central multi-story atrium that will also serve as a gathering place for students and community. Other features include a gymnasium/auditorium, instructional media center, science labs, music rooms, art room and full-service cafeteria.
"This is a fantastic facility for the children of West Philadelphia and a great place for them to learn and grow," said Dr. Susan Fuhrman, dean of GSE. "We're very proud of the partnership that made this school a reality and thrilled, of course, that it's been named for Sadie Alexander."
A grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for this fall.
The life and accomplishments of Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander
A native Philadelphian and life-long champion of civil rights and equal opportunity for all, regardless of race or gender, Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander was a leader in the legal, political and civic arenas of her day. Among her many "firsts" was her place as the first African-American woman to enroll in the School of Law at the University of Pennsylvania and earn the juris doctor degree.She was also a wife and mother and an unlikely comic book hero.
Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander
1898 -- Born Jan. 2 in Philadelphia to Aaron Albert and Mary Louise Tanner Mossell.
1916 -- Graduated from M Street High School in Washington, D.C., and entered the University of Pennsylvania.
1918 -- Completed her undergraduate program at Penn and was awarded a bachelor of science degree in education with senior honors.
1919 -- Earned a master of arts degree in economics at Penn and was awarded the Francis Sergeant Pepper Fellowship in economics, which enabled her to study for her doctorate.
1921 -- Became the first African-American woman in the nation to earn a Ph.D. in economics. Her dissertation was "The Standard of Living Among One Hundred Negro Migrant Families in Philadelphia."
1921 -- Was elected the first president of the Grand Chapter, the national organization of the African-American sorority, Delta Sigma Theta.
1921-23 -- Worked as assistant actuary at the North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Company in Durham, N.C.
1923 -- Returned to Philadelphia where she married Raymond Pace Alexander, the brother of her good friend and sorority sister from undergraduate school, Virginia Alexander.
1924 -- Became the first African-American woman to enroll in Penn's School of Law, where her father Aaron Albert Mossell had been the first African-American to graduate. She was also the first African-American woman to serve as associate editor of the Law Review.
1927 -- Became the first African-American woman to earn a law degree at Penn, pass the bar and practice law in Pennsylvania. Joined her husband's Center City Philadelphia law firm, specializing in estate and family law.
1927-31 -- Became the first African-American woman to serve as assistant city solicitor of Philadelphia.
1936-40 -- Served her second term as assistant city solicitor of Philadelphia.
1943-47 -- Became the first woman to serve as secretary of the National Bar Association.
1946-65 -- Served as a member of the Philadelphia Fellowship Commission.
1947 -- Appointed to the President's Committee on Civil Rights by President Harry S. Truman. The committee's report, "To Secure These Rights," served as the foundation of the civil-rights movement in America and was the basis for future civil-rights policy decisions and legislation.
1948 -- Named Woman of the Year in "Negro Heroes," a comic book published by the National Urban League in conjunction with the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
1949 -- Chaired a special committee of the Fellowship Commission set up to ensure that a new city charter would include provisions guaranteeing equal treatment and equal opportunity in the city's administration.
1952 -- As chair of the Fellowship Commission committee, drafted a section of the Home Rule Charter of 1952, calling for the formation of a Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.
1959 -- Opened her own private law practice after her husband was appointed judge in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the first African-American to serve in this position. A quarter of her practice was dedicated to civil and probate work, while the rest of the time she focused on domestic relations, divorce, adoption and juvenile care.
1974 -- Was awarded her fifth degree at the University of Pennsylvania, an honorary doctor of laws degree. This was the first of seven such honors by colleges and universities around the country.
1976 -- Retired from the active practice of law but joined the firm of Atkinson, Myers and Archie of counsel.
1978 -- Was appointed chairperson of the White House Conference on Aging by President Jimmy Carter and charged with addressing a range of social and economic needs of the elderly.
1989 -- Died Nov. 1 at age 91 after having been recognized, in her last decade, as one of Philadelphia's leading citizens.
The Late Sadie T. M. Alexander HONORED!!
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