JoAnne Adrienne Epps (May 28, 1951 – September 19, 2023) was an American legal scholar and academic. After serving as the executive vice president and provost of

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

, she was the university's 13th president. She was the first Black woman to be permanently appointed and serve as President of the University.

Early life and education

Joanne Adrienne Epps, the daughter of a machinist and her mother was an administrator at Temple’s Tyler School of Art, (then in Elkins Park). She was born on May 28, 1951, and grew up in

Cheltenham, Pennsylvania Cheltenham is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania, United States, with a ZIP code of 19012. It is located directly over the city line (Cheltenham Avenue) of Philadelphia. It also borders Northeast ...

, graduating from Cheltenham High School in 1969. She was recruited as a promising African-American student to enroll in

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

, where she became a member of the first class of women at that school. Epps received a B.A. in 1973 from Trinity and a J.D. in 1976 from

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

Career

Epps began her legal career in 1976, as a deputy city attorney in Los Angeles. She moved back to Philadelphia in 1980, and became an

assistant United States attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

. She joined Temple Law School as a faculty member in 1985, and then served as associate dean for academic affairs from 1989 to 2008. In 2009, she was named as a potential Barack Obama Supreme Court candidate. She served as dean of Temple University Beasley School of Law from 2008 to 2016 before becoming provost. She became acting president in 2023, following the resignation of

Jason Wingard Jason Wingard (born 1971) is an American academic and executive. He is the twelfth president of Temple University and the first African-American president in the institution’s 137-year history. He previously served in executive leadership roles ...

. Epps' primary areas of teaching included criminal procedure, evidence, and trial advocacy. She taught Litigation Basics, a course for first-year law students at Temple. ''National Jurist'' named Epps one of the 25 most influential leaders in legal education, and her work on curricula and experiential learning in legal education served as inspiration for a new center at Temple Law School for training on accessing civil justice (the Stephen and Sandra Sheller Center for Social Justice). Epps trained Sudanese lawyers who represented victims of the

war in Darfur The War in Darfur, also nicknamed the Land Cruiser War, is a major armed conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan that began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebel groups beg ...

, as well as prosecutors for the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. After her death, Temple's Board of Trustees posthumously named Epps university president, removing "acting" from her title.

Personal life and death

Epps was married to L. Harrison Jay, a longtime employee in Temple's community affairs office. They lived in Shamong Township, New Jersey. On September 19, 2023, Epps was onstage at a memorial service for Charles L. Blockson at Temple's Performing Arts Center, when she abruptly fell ill and lost consciousness in her seat. She was taken to

Temple University Hospital Temple University Hospital (TUH) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is an academic medical center in the United States which is a part of the healthcare network Temple Health. It is the chief clinical training site for the Temple University School of M ...

, where she was pronounced dead at age 72. A colleague announcing her death described her illness as a "sudden episode".

Selected publications

* "Classical Rhetoric and the Modern Trial Lawyer", 36 ''Litigation'' 2, with

Paul Mark Sandler Paul Mark Sandler is a Maryland trial lawyer and author of numerous books on trial advocacy and litigation. A partner in the law firm of Shapiro Sher Guinot & Sandler, P.A., he represents businesses and individuals in commercial lawsuits, employm ...

& Ronald J. Waicukauski, 2010 * * ''The 12 Secrets of Persuasive Argument'', with Paul Mark Sandler & Ronald J. Waicukauski,

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

, 2009, * ''101 Vignettes for Improving Trial Evidence: Making and Meeting Objections'' with Anthony Bocchino and David Sonenshein, , National Institute for Trial Advocacy, 2nd edition: 2023, 1st edition: 2005 * ''Trial Evidence: Making and Meeting Objections'' (book, videotape and teacher's manual) with D. Sonenshein & A. Bocchino, , National Institute for Trial Advocacy, 3rd edition: 2004; 2nd edition: 1990 * ''The Winning Argument'', with P. M. Sandler & R. J. Waicukauski, American Bar Association, 2001, * "Ethos and the Art of Argument", 26 ''Litigation'' 31, with Paul Mark Sandler and Ronald J. Waicukauski, 1999 * "Clarifying the Meaning of Federal Rule of Evidence" 703, 36 ''Boston College Law Review'', 53, 1994 * "Passing the Confrontation Clause Stop Sign: Is All Hearsay Constitutionally Admissible?" 77 ''Kentucky Law Journal'', 7, 1988

References

External links

Temple University Beasley School of Law webpage of JoAnne A. Epps
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Epps, JoAnne A. 1951 births 2023 deaths 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American lawyers African-American legal scholars African-American women academic administrators African-American women lawyers American legal scholars American women legal scholars Assistant United States Attorneys Deans of law schools in the United States Deaths onstage People from Cheltenham, Pennsylvania People from Shamong Township, New Jersey Temple University administrators Temple University faculty Trinity College (Connecticut) alumni Women deans (academic) Yale Law School alumni 20th-century American women lawyers 20th-century African-American lawyers 21st-century African-American lawyers 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American women academics 21st-century American academics 21st-century African-American academics 20th-century African-American academics 20th-century American academics 20th-century American women academics