Mark C. Alexander is an American attorney, law professor, educator, and in the last aforementioned capacity the dean of the

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic church, Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinians in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Sa ...

Charles Widger School of Law. He was previously an associate dean for academics and law professor at

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the oldest diocesan un ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, as well as a political activist and campaign specialist. Beginning in January 2007, Alexander served as a senior advisor to Barack Obama's presidential campaign. Early on, Alexander served as policy director, building Obama's network of policy experts and providing overall strategic guidance. As New Jersey state director in the primaries, Alexander ran all campaign operations in his home state. After the election, he served on the Presidential Transition Team.

Biography

Alexander is the son of Adele (Logan), an historian, and attorney Clifford Alexander Jr.(1933-2022) His family moved from New York City to Washington, DC when his father began public service during the

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

administration. His father also served under President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

, and was appointed by the

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

administration as the first African-American Secretary of the Army. Mark has an older sister

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

, who became a poet and professor at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. Alexander graduated from college and law school, both at Yale. He became active in Democratic Party politics. He has worked for U.S. Senators

Edward Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...

and

Howard Metzenbaum Howard Morton Metzenbaum (June 4, 1917March 12, 2008) was an American politician and businessman who served for almost 20 years as a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate from Ohio (1974, 1976–1995). He also served in the Ohio House ...

. In 1999–2000, Alexander served as Issues Director for the

Bill Bradley William Warren Bradley (born July 28, 1943) is an American politician and former professional basketball player. He served three terms as a Democratic U.S. senator from New Jersey (1979–1997). He ran for the Democratic Party's nomination f ...

for President Campaign. He was General Counsel to

Cory Booker Cory Anthony Booker (born April 27, 1969) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the junior United States senator from New Jersey since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Booker is the first African-American U.S. sena ...

in the 2006 Newark Municipal elections and for Booker's transition team after his election as mayor. He also served as a law professor at

. In 2010, President Barack Obama appointed Alexander to the 12-member J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board established by Congress to supervise the global Fulbright Program. In 2013, Alexander unsuccessfully challenged incumbent Nia Gill in the Democratic primary for the state senate position in New Jersey's 34th Legislative District. Alexander was a longtime resident of Montclair, NJ. In July 2016, he became Arthur J. Kania Dean and Professor of Law of the

Charles Widger School of Law.Faculty Profiles: Arthur J. Kania Dean - Mark C. Alexander
Villanova Charles Widger School of Law, 2018

References

External links

Seton Hall faculty page
''Huffington Post,'' 21 March 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander, Mark C. Living people New Jersey Democrats Lawyers from Montclair, New Jersey Year of birth missing (living people)