News Archive

So many women graduates of the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law have gone on to distinguished careers, it’s hard to focus on just one for Women’s History Month. Alumnae of note have made manes for themselves as public defenders, prosecutors, law firm partners, business leaders, trial court judges, appellate jurists, federal judges, members of the Indiana General Assembly, Congress.

Two of the most impressive alumnae were Harriette Vesta Bailey Conn, ’55, and Pamela Carter, ’84.

Harriette Vesta Bailey Conn, ’55, was IU McKinney’s first African-American female graduate. She also was the daughter of Robert L. Bailey, a 1912 graduate of our law school whom we told you about in February. Conn served as a deputy in the Indiana Attorney General’s Office, as a deputy prosecuting attorney, opened a private practice, was elected an Indiana state representative from Marion County, twice, and served as State Public Defender after being appointed to the post by the Indiana Supreme Court. You can read more about her life and career here.

No story on impressive alumnae would be complete without Pamela Carter, ’84. She was the first African-American woman to be elected state attorney general in the nation, a post she held in Indiana from 1993-1997. Before she retired, after a wide-ranging career that included public service, practice in a traditional legal setting, and business, she was president of Cummins’ Distribution Business, the first woman to run a major business unit at the company. She was the first African-American to serve as Cummins Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary when she joined the company in 1997. You can learn more about her career in a story from 2016 in advance of Carter delivering the commencement address for IU McKinney graduates that year.