"Judge Sara J. Harper"

Is the first African American woman to graduate from Case Western Reserve University Law School;the first woman to serve on the judiciary of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve;and to co-found the first victim's rights program in the country.In 1990 She and another African American woman became the first women to win seats on the Ohio Court Appeals.In 1992,Sara sat by assignment on the Ohio Supreme Court,another first for an African American woman.She ran for her first political office,state representative in 1954.In 1980, Judge Harper ran as the endorsed Republican candidate for chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court and she was the first African American to do so.She is the recipient of many awards including the Ohio Supreme Court's Excellent Judicial Service Award,and theNAACP'S Unsung Heroine Award and Raymond Pace Award.She is a member of the Ohio Veteran's Hall of Fame and the National Bar Association's Hall of Fame.The Sara J.Harper Library in The Outhwaite Homes Housing Project is named in her honor.She has written for the National Bar Association Magazine on Gender Bias and has been a lifetime member of the Mt.Olive Baptist Church.