Mary Frances Berry, the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and professor of history in the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, has been elected an honorary fellow of the American Society of Legal History.
Michael Grossberg, president of the American Society of Legal History, stated that “no one has done more than Mary Frances Berry to advance our understanding of race, gender and the Constitution in the United States, as evidenced by her work and by the work of the many scholars she has influenced.”
Professor Berry has been on the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania since 1987. She served for 25 years on the U.S. Commission for Civil Rights, including nearly 12 years as chair.
Dr. Berry is the author or co-author of many books including Power in Words: The Stories Behind Barack Obama’s Speeches, From the State House to the White House (Beacon Press, 2010) and And Justice for All: The United States Commission on Civil Rights and the Struggle for Freedom in America (Alfred A. Knopf, 2009).
Dr. Berry is a graduate of Howard University and earned a law degree and a Ph.D. in history at the University of Michigan.
