News

Supreme Court Justice Newman to Receive Honorary Degree

December 11, 2000

HARRISBURG, December 12, 2000 — Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Sandra Schultz Newman will become Clarion University’s eighth honorary degree recipient during fall commencement ceremonies at the school on December 16. Justice Newman, the first woman elected to Pennsylvania’s highest court, will receive an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree from Clarion President Dr. Diane Reinhard. The degree is awarded to persons who’ve made outstanding contributions to the university, Commonwealth or an academic discipline. “This degree has a very special meaning for me because it recognizes the contributions I’ve tried to make during my career in public service,” Justice Newman said. “I’m further honored to join past recipients of this degree such as Dick and Ginny Thornburgh and John Rigas.” Justice Newman has a wide range of legal experiences. She received a law degree from Villanova Law School, a master’s degree from Temple University, and a bachelor’s degree from Drexel University. Before her election to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in 1995, Justice Newman was elected a judge on the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania in 1993. Before entering the judiciary, she was in private practice for 20 years, and served as an assistant district attorney in Montgomery County. Justice Newman is the liaison from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to the Third Circuit Task Force on Management of Death Penalty Litigation, the Pennsylvania Lawyers Fund for Client Security Board, the Domestic Relations Procedural Rules Committee, and the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. She serves as a member of the Judicial Council of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and is chair of the Unification of Statewide Rules Committee. She has served as a course planner and faculty for the Third Circuit Joint Federal-State Workshop on Habeas Corpus Law. She is honorary co-chair of the Pennsylvania Futures Commission Conference on “Citizenship in the 21st Century: A Context for Learning and Living.” She also lectures at many law schools and bar associations and is a past president of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Justice Newman is immediate past chair of the Board of Consultors of Villanova University Law School, a member of the advisory board of Drexel University College of Business and Administration, and a fellow of both the American Bar Foundation and the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She was elected a member of The American Law Institute and has been appointed to the Judicial Work Group for the Department of Health and Human Services and the Advisory Committee to the National Center for State Courts. She was listed in “Best Lawyers of America,” in 1983, 1987, 1989 and 1993 and has the highest rating — AV — given by Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, which is a public confirmation from her peers, members of the legal community. She also is listed in Marquis’ “Who’s Who in American Law 1998/1999.” Justice Newman also has received many honors, including the Drexel 100 Award, as one of Drexel University’s 100 outstanding living alumni; and she became the third recipient and first female graduate to receive the Medallion of Achievement Award at Villanova University Law School’s commencement exercises. Other honorary degrees held by Justice Newman include doctorates from Gannon University and Widener University Law School, where she was also the commencement speaker in May 1996. The Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania has honored Newman for “Dedicated Leadership and Outstanding Contributions to the Community and the Law Enforcement.” Justice Newman was the recipient of The Susan B. Anthony Award from The Women’s Bar Association of Western Pennsylvania, in 1996, “for her dedication to the elimination of gender bias in the legal system and the legal profession and for being an exemplary role model for women aspiring to the practice of law and to judicial office.” She also was presented the 1997 Legion of Honor Gold Medallion from the Chapel of the Four Chaplains, and been honored by the Justinian Society and Tau Epsilon Rho Law Society. In 1996, Justice Newman was named a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Commission for Women also honored her during Women’s History Month in 1996. She has been the recipient of the Philadelphia Award for Super Achiever, the Jeff Fund, from the Pediatric Juvenile Colitis Foundation of the Jefferson Medical College and Hospital in 1979, and she received many awards and honors from various charitable organizations. Newman is the author of Trial Practice Chapter and Trial Practice Consultant, Three-Volume Book: “Alimony, Child Support and Counsel Fees,” and of many articles appearing in legal journals. Outside her legal work, Newman serves on the boards of many organizations, which involve the community, charities, education and the arts. Previous Clarion University Honorary Degree recipients include: 2000 - Ginny Judson Thornburgh, Doctor of Public Service 1999 - Dr. William Julius Wilson, Doctor of Humane Letters; 1997 - John Rigas, Doctor of Public Service, and Gary Merz (posthumous), Doctor of Pedagogy; 1996 - Randall Robinson, Doctor of Laws; 1995 - Janice Fuellhart, Doctor of Letters; and 1994 - Dick Thornburgh, Doctor of Public Service.