Skip to Main Content

Earl B. Dickerson Research Guide

Dickerson and the Law School

Earl B. Dickerson matriculation cardDickerson enrolled in the Law School in the autumn of 1915, and worked in the Law Library to receive a tuition remission. At the end of his second year, in June 1917, he was drafted, along with all of the men in his class. He went to Army OTS in Iowa and became a first lieutenant and served as counsel in courts-martial and commanded an infantry batallion. In March 1920, Dickerson received his JD degree, the first awarded to an African-American by the University of Chicago,

In 1984, Dickerson created the Earl B. Dickerson Scholarship Fund in memory of his wife, Kathryn Kennedy Dickerson. The fund benefits a student who exemplifies strong moral character and who is committed to projects in the law that seek to correct social injustices.

The Law School offers the Earl B. Dickerson Fellowship. From the most recent posting:

Photograph of Earl Dickerson from Law School composite

 

The University of Chicago Law School invites applications for the Earl B. Dickerson Fellowship, with an appointment at the rank of Instructor, for a twelve-month term to begin on July 1 or August 1, 2019. The Dickerson Fellowship is named after the first African-American graduate of the Law School, from the class of 1920. The Law School seeks candidates who demonstrate the promise of distinguished legal scholarship and law teaching and ideally have relevant practice experience that will qualify them to act as teachers and mentors of students. In addition, we encourage applications from candidates with diverse backgrounds and perspectives who will enrich and improve the student experience and the Law School's culture. The Dickerson Fellow will teach one or more courses per year and will be expected to publish high-quality scholarship and contribute to the intellectual life of the Law School.

Profiles in the Law School Record