The Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and a professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania since 1987, Mary Frances Berry was appointed a commissioner of the Civil Rights Commission by President Jimmy Carter in 1980. After President Ronald Reagan fired her for criticizing his Civil Rights policies, she sued and won re-instatement in federal district court. In 1993 President Bill Clinton appointed her chairperson of the Commission, a position she has held until recently.

She also served as assistant secretary for Education in the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) during the Carter Administration, coordinating and supervising nearly $13 billion in federal education programs. Prior to her service at HEW, Berry was provost of the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Maryland and chancellor and professor of History and Law at the University of Colorado. She has also held faculty appointments at Central Michigan University, Eastern Michigan University, the University of Maryland, the University of Michigan, and Howard University.

A graduate of Howard University with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees, Berry holds a Ph.D. in American constitutional history (1966) and a J.D. from the University of Michigan (1970). A member of the District of Columbia Bar, she teaches history and law at the University of Pennsylvania.

The holder of more than 30 honorary doctoral degrees and awards for her public service and scholarly activities, and the past president of the Organization of American Historians, Berry has also written seven books, including  Black Resistance/White Law  A History of Constitutional Racism in America (1995) and The Pig Farmer's Daughter and Other Tales of American Justice  Episodes of Racism and Sexism in the Courts from 1865 to the Present (2000).