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Dr. Weddington speaks on leadership

Roe vs. Wade lawyer returns to campus to speak at the Alonzo and Elizabeth Jamison endowed lecture series

Heather Hines, Reporter

Dr. Sarah Weddington.
Dr. Sarah Weddington.

Famous crusader for women’s rights and former professor at TWU, Dr. Sarah Weddington will return to the Denton campus on March 29 at 7 p.m. to deliver the first lecture in the new Alonzo and Elisabeth Jamison endowed lecture series.

The late Alonzo Jamison spent 14 years in the Texas House of Representatives and 16 years as a professor of history and government at TWU. His wife Elizabeth was a 1943 TWU music alumna. A friend of the Jamisons, Dr. Weddington will deliver the first lecture over the topic of leadership.     

Cornaro Professor of English Dr. Phyllis Bridges, a member of the lecture committee, explained: “Since this is the first in a series of lectures, we wanted to get a person who was really
dynamic and would get it off to a great start and [someone] who wanted to come to TWU.”

Dr. Weddington spent much time in the past with TWU as a distinguished lecturer from 1981-1990 and an adjunct professor of history and government in 1993. She also spoke in 2001 at the Sarah Weddington Centennial Leadership Conference held at TWU. While a member of the Texas legislature, Dr. Weddington was supportive of TWU in proposals to the legislature.

In a phone interview with The Lasso, Dr. Weddington stated: “So I certainly want to be there to encourage TWU students to go into leadership. I’m really looking forward to being there partly because I remember being there and how much I enjoyed it and how wonderful people were. Alonzo and his wife were very grateful to TWU. This is to honor them, and they loved TWU students. I’m really honored to be the first Alonzo and Elizabeth Jamison lecturer.”

In her lecture, Dr. Weddington will discuss leadership, a topic she seems very qualified to speak over. Dr. Weddington is regarded as the youngest attorney to
successfully argue a case in front of the Supreme Court, in the landmark case Roe v. Wade; she has served as the advisor on women’s issues to President Jimmy Carter, General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the keynote speaker in the U.S.–China Conference on Women and Leadership in China, and, in Texas, she has helped reform the Texas sexual abuse laws and Texas rape law to better help victims. Her accomplishments and contributions to our nation and its women make her an ideal speaker for TWU.   

Dr. Bridges stated: “The area where she works now is helping women develop the leadership skills that they will need to succeed in the world. She especially wants to help our students, alums and community to think about the qualities they need to take positions of leadership and to have the option to step into leadership if they want.”

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