Peter Alexander named dean of SIU law school

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southern Illinois University Carbondale Provost and Vice Chancellor John M. Dunn announced today that Peter C. Alexander, a professor of law at The Pennsylvania State University's Dickinson School of Law, has been appointed dean of the SIU School of Law.

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Peter C. Alexander

The appointment is effective June 1 and is subject to ratification by the SIU Board of Trustees.

Alexander, who earned a bachelor's degree in political science from SIUC in 1979 and a law degree from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston in 1983, is the school's first African-American dean.

After earning his law degree, Alexander served as a law clerk for the U.S. District Court in Danville until 1985. He then entered private practice and eventually set up his own firm in Watseka (Ill.) Alexander joined The Dickinson School of Law in 1992.

"I'm extremely excited to be returning to the school where I received my professional start," said Alexander. "It's a place where I learned a lot about leadership and service and I'm looking forward to giving something back to the University."

Alexander takes over the duties held by Thomas F. Guernsey who left the SIUC law school last year to become dean of the Albany (N.Y.) Law School. W. Eugene Basanta, a professor in the law school, has served as interim dean since last July.

"I am confident that Peter will be a strong and positive advocate for the School of Law and SIUC," said Dunn. "His credentials are extremely impressive and I look forward to working and cooperating with Peter in our efforts to further enhance the School of Law."

Regarded as one of the nation's leading scholars in the field of bankruptcy law, Alexander's research has included aspects of the bankruptcy process and examination of the differential impacts of bankruptcy law and practice on women.

Alexander's list of publications includes topics ranging from family law to bankruptcy and he has made presentations before such groups as the National People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference and the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges.

He is a member of the American Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association and was inducted into the American College of Bankruptcy last year.

Alexander has also served as a member of the editorial advisory board of the American Bankruptcy Institute's Law Review. He is the former chair of the Association of American Law Schools' Committee on Sections and is the current chair of the association's Section on Creditors' and Debtors' Rights.

(Editors note: Alexander's parents, Leonard and Muriel Alexander, live in the Champaign-Urbana area.)

(Photo provided)