Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was a retired associate justice of the Supreme Court. She was nominated for this post in 1981 by President Ronald Reagan. Justice O’Connor was the first female Supreme Court justice; she retired in 2006.
Prior to serving on the Supreme Court, Justice O’Connor had been in public service for nearly 30 years. She served as deputy county attorney of San Mateo County, California, and civilian attorney for the Quartermaster’s Corps in Frankfurt, Germany. She practiced law in Maryvale, Arizona, and served as assistant attorney general of Arizona. She was appointed to the Arizona State Senate and was subsequently re-elected to two terms. She was elected judge of the Maricopa County Superior Court and served until 1979, when she was appointed to the Arizona Court of Appeals.
Since retiring from the Supreme Court, Justice O’Connor has focused on promoting civic education. In 2009, she launched Our Courts, which later became iCivics, an organization that engages children in meaningful civic learning.
Justice O’Connor has served on the board of numerous organizations, including the College of William and Mary, the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the American Bar Association Museum of Law, and the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools, and the National Constitution Center.
She has received numerous honors and awards. In 2009, she was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Justice O’Connor graduated magna cum laude with B.A. in economics from Stanford University and graduated from Stanford Law School. She resides in Arizona and has three sons.
