SANDRA DAY O'CONNOR: "HOW A COWGIRL GOT TO THE SUPREME COURT"
Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court, has been a pioneer for women in the legal profession since she began her career more than half a century ago. In a lecture April 12 at Barnard, O'Connor recalled the start of her professional career and the shock she experienced when she discovered there was virtually no place for a female attorney in private practice when she graduated near the top of her Stanford Law School class in 1952. Nonetheless, her expansive message to a room packed with students, alumnae and friends of Barnard was clear: make the most of any opportunity to do satisfying work, even if opportunity comes packaged in ways that may seem less than compelling.
President Judith Shapiro welcomed O'Connor, citing her as a "true champion of justice."
Shapiro said: "In her 24 years on the Court, Justice O'Connor has been a guardian of women's rights - a careful steward in support of issues that are important to women. And in higher education, her rulings show a clear undersanding of the value of diversity -- which is a compelling interest, both in terms of the education that students receive while they are in college and in terms of the kind of leadership our nation needs."
 O'Connor, who grew up on a remote cattle ranch in southeastern Arizona, said she could not find a job despite having been editor of the Stanford Law Review and third in her class of 102. A classmate's father at a Los Angeles law firm told her she might find work in his firm -- but as a legal secretary.
In her hour-long talk, which she called "How A Cowgirl Got to the Court," O'Connor, a moderate-conservative known as a guardian of women's rights, said she had to create her own opportunities or accept unsatisfying work. Although she needed to support herself and her husband John, after she finished law school a year ahead, she talked her way into a job as a deputy attorney for San Mateo County, Calif., by offering to work for free.
"I represented various county officials and agencies and did work for them and I loved it," said O'Connor, who is 75. "My [male] classmates who had no trouble getting jobs were out getting depositions and doing very dull work for law firms."
That job marked the beginning of a public career without precedent at nearly every step. In 1969, after raising three sons, O'Connor was appointed to a vacant Republican seat in the Arizona Senate and by 1972 became the first female state senate majority leader in U.S. history. Even when President Ronald Reagan appointed her to the Supreme Court in 1981, she had to be resourceful. "There was no how-to-do-it manual," said O'Connor, who literally had to figure out how to manage the paperwork herself.
O'Connor has cast deciding votes on numerous split cases, and has ruled in favor of diversity in education. Carolyn Cavaness, president of Barnard's Student Government Association, asked whether women in high-profile political positions are stereotyped.
"Women who have been particularly successful tend to be intelligent and open-minded and I would say friendly," said O'Connor, who herself has a friendly, self-effacing manner. The justice said friendliness enables others "to have some trust in your judgment and in your actions."
Following her talk, the College hosted O'Connor for a gala dinner and presentation of the F.A.P. Barnard Award for distinguished service.
Sandra Day O'Connor with Judith Shapiro after receiving the F.A.P. Barnard Award
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President Shapiro said: "You are an inspiration to women everywhere, and to everyone who refuses to accept the limits and barriers imposed by discrimination and unequal access. Throughout your life--starting with your childhood on a remote cattle ranch and your schooldays under the eye of a grandmother who expected you to accomplish great things--you have exhibited a brilliant intellect and extraordinary strength, courage and resolve.
"This evening, we honor you in the name of another great thinker who played a historic role in the advancement of women. In the late 19 th century, Frederick A.P. Barnard, president of Columbia University, waged a visionary campaign for the admission of women to Columbia College. When the University's trustees refused to honor Barnard's vision of educational equality, this college was founded in his name, and it has always honored his legacy by offering women the best in higher education.
Two Barnard graduates who are jurists, Judith S. Kaye, Chief Judge of the State of New York, and Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum, a United States District Judge for New York, offered toasts to O'Connor at the close of the program.
— Louise Kramer
For more information, please contact Suzanne Trimel in the Barnard Office of Public Affairs, 212-854-2037
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