For Immediate Release

	October 14, 2004 TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF SERVICE, THE HONORABLE JOYCE LONDON ALEXANDER On Friday, October 15, 2004, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts will celebrate twenty-five years of service by the Honorable Joyce London Alexander who became the first African American woman Magistrate Judge in the nation’s history when she was sworn in on August 6, 1979. Alexander also became the first African American Chief United States Magistrate Judge on January 2, 1996 and the first African American woman chief judge of any court in Massachusetts. The ceremony will highlight the unveiling of her portrait which will be presented by her former law clerks. Alexander, who is adamant about community services, will also selflessly use the occasion later that evening to present the curriculum of “Kids, Courts and Citizenship” which is a program that provides 5th grade students from Boston schools with educational and learning experiences in the federal courts. Alexander created the program in 1989, which exposes students to court personnel, such as lawyers, judges, and marshals, as well as court proceedings and mock trials. Since its inception, the program has seen over 7,000 children, with more than 600 participating each year. The curriculum will be presented by Boston Mayor Thomas Menimo. It is set to be adopted by Just the Beginning Foundation, (a group of black federal judges), and implemented nationwide. Alexander, is former chair of the National Bar Association’s Judicial Council and currently serves on the board of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies (the nation’s first African American think tank) where she has been vice chair of the board and chair of its nominating committee. Alexander was designated in Massachusetts by the Museum of African American History as a “Living Legend” and recently honored by the Federal Bar Association of Boston for judicial service. Uniquely, the New England Law Review devoted its entire Volume 38, No. 4 to Judge Alexander, covering her life and precedent setting cases. The website is www.nesl.edu/lawrev/publications/cfm. Alexander is a graduate of Howard University and received her law degree from New England School of Law. She has honorary degrees from Bridgewater State College, Cambridge College, New England Law School, Northeastern University, North Carolina Central University, and Suffolk University.