Penn law school adds Sadie Alexander fellowship after backlash over pausing scholarship named after activist – PhillyVoice
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September 12, 2025
The University of Pennsylvania launched a new scholarship and a fellowship program named after lawyer and activist Sadie Alexander on Friday. The news follows the removal of a similar program in August.
The University of Pennsylvania announced two new programs at the Carey Law School a month after shuttering the Office of Equal Opportunity and Engagement and pausing a scholarship named after pioneering civil rights activist Sadie T.M. Alexander.
On Friday, the institution launched the Sadie T.M. Alexander Post-Graduate Fellowship for students working on a civil rights project. It also said it plans to add new full-tuition scholarships for students with the greatest financial need. The move comes after the school faced backlash over halting the scholarship amid pressure from the Trump administration.
Alexander was born and raised in Philadelphia and became the first Black woman to graduate from Penn's law school in 1927. She had a 50-plus year career as a lawyer and activist.
The new fellowship will allow students to partner with nonprofits to develop a two-year project that advances civil rights in Philadelphia or Washington, D.C., where Alexander spent her high school years. Priority will be given to projects centered on both racial and economic justice. Fellows will receive two years of post-graduate funding for the project.
The fellowship is open to students in their third and final year of law school or recent graduates who are completing a clerkship that they began immediately after graduation.
Additionally, the law school will add full-tuition scholarships for new students who demonstrate the greatest financial need. Officials did not immediately return a request for comment on the number offered or eligibility requirements.
In a statement, Penn said Friday's announcement is part of a larger effort to provide additional resources for students. It plans to "dramatically expand" both its full-tuition and need-based scholarship programs, grow the Eric J. Friedman & Skadden 1L Accelerate Program, a pre-orientation program where first-year students can grow their legal networks, and build on its opportunities for first-generation college students.
"These goals reflect a multi-layered approach to making the Law School’s world-class education accessible to talented students from all backgrounds, and to empower them to pursue their aspirations, serve their communities and shape the future of the legal profession," Penn said in a statement.
Last month, the school said it would not accept applications for a scholarship named in honor of Alexander for the 2025-2026 school year. The program offered full tuition to students who focused on racial justice in both their studies and law practice, and it remains on pause. At the time, the university also announced the closure of the law school's Office of Equal Opportunity and Engagement, which provided resources and training on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
That decision followed an executive order by President Donald Trump in January which said universities receiving federal funding needed to end DEI programming. Penn later removed mentions of diversity from its website and equal opportunity policies. In May, Penn Medicine also took down its DEI websites.
In July, city officials announced the final design for a statue of Alexander, which will be installed outside the Municipal Services Building in Center City. The location is near the previous home of a statue of former Mayor Frank Rizzo.
Michaela Althouse
michaela@phillyvoice.com
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