News Archive

Sharon Murphy, ’82, didn’t come from a family of lawyers. She was an English teacher from Lafayette, Indiana, when she came to law school at IU McKinney. 

There, she found friends and a community that remain important today. “Law school was phenomenal. I made a lot of good friends, and feel very connected to the legal community in Indianapolis and throughout the state,” Murphy says. “McKinney is the best place in Indiana to make connections.” 

Her particular law school class has been especially successful, she notes. There are too many leading figures in the legal community to name, she says, but they include Indiana Supreme Court Justice Steven David, ‘82, as well as several law firm partners, well-known plaintiff and defense lawyers, university faculty, and leaders in business and non-profit organizations. 

“They are amazing people,” she says. “Because of our law school connection and the kind of people they are, I am sure that they would take my call if I reached out.” 

After graduating from IU McKinney, Murphy practiced law. She took a break from the profession and returned to teaching English, taking a position at Christel House Academy, for a few years. “It was very challenging, and very rewarding,” Murphy says. 

In 2017, Murphy returned to the practice of law, representing employers in worker’s compensation cases. 
Whether she was teaching or practicing law, Murphy has made it a point to make an annual donation to the law school since 2000, and encourages her classmates to do so as a class agent volunteer. Her reasons are two-fold: She wants to support IU McKinney’s mission, and she also believes that giving consistently is another way of giving generously.

“I feel like it’s important to support where you’ve come from, and it’s important to show that continued support,” Murphy says. “The percentage of alumni who give consistently is as important as the amount they give.” 

She was able to afford college and law school thanks to a financial award as the daughter of a disabled American veteran, Murphy says. “I was not wealthy, and I don’t want only wealthy people to be able to afford law school,” she says. “I am thankful for the education I received at IU McKinney, because it’s given me the ability to have a life that I would not otherwise have had.”