UNDATED – To commemorate Women’s History Month, Concord Law School at Purdue University Global will present a live discussion titled “The Power of Black Women in the Law: Past, Present, and Future Perspectives” for the next installment of its Distinguished Speaker Series at noon pacific time on March 25.
The featured speakers are Shekera Algarin, an adjunct professor for Concord Law School and deputy executive director of The Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety and Office of High Crimes in New York City; Alaysia Black Hackett, a Concord alumna who recently was appointed as deputy chief diversity officer for the governor’s office of diversity, equity and inclusion for the Commonwealth of Virginia; and Valencia Macon, the head of the U.S. merger and acquisitions legal group at Siemens Energy.
“Women of color are at the intersection of groups that have historically been underrepresented in the legal profession,” said Martin Pritikin, dean of Concord Law School. “I am delighted to host a panel of speakers of Black women that includes a Concord professor and a Concord alumna, both of whom have achieved distinguished positions in government, as well as a prominent lawyer in the private sector.”
Before her current position with the New York City mayor’s office, Algarin served as senior counsel in the crime strategies unit, handling a portfolio of domestic violence, human trafficking and adolescent cases. Previously, she worked as a senior trial attorney with the Legal Aid Society in Brooklyn for 15 years. Algarin received her Juris Doctor from Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Hackett has 20 years of executive-level diversity leadership, including serving as director of diversity, equity, and inclusion for Mars Hill University in North Carolina. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology with a concentration in race, ethnicity, and gender relations, and a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in organizational development from Western Carolina University. Hackett studied law at Indiana University’s Robert H. McKinney School of Law and earned an Executive Juris Doctor degree from Concord in 2019.
Macon has practiced in corporate law for over 25 years. After several years as a corporate associate at Paul, Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP, she joined Siemens in 2000 as an associate counsel and has ascended the ranks to her current position. Macon earned her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Chicago.
Attorneys could receive 1.00 CA Elimination of Bias in the Legal Profession MCLE credit for attending the webinar. Those interested should register here.
About Purdue University Global
Purdue University Global delivers personalized online education tailored to the unique needs of adults who have work or life experience beyond the classroom, enabling them to develop essential academic and professional skills with the support and flexibility they need to achieve their career goals. It offers a hyper-tailored path for students to earn an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree, based on their work experience, desired pace, military service, previous college credits, and other considerations – no matter where they are in their life journey. Purdue Global serves approximately 36,000 students (as of January 2021), most of whom earn their degrees online. Purdue Global is a nonprofit, public university accredited by The Higher Learning Commission. It is affiliated with Purdue University’s flagship institution, a highly ranked public research university located in West Lafayette, Indiana. Purdue University also operates two regional campuses in Fort Wayne and Northwest Indiana, as well as serving science, engineering and technology students at the Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus. For more information, please visit purdueglobal.edu.
