Northwestern promoted Stephanie Graham, currently interim general counsel for the University, to vice president and general counsel, University President Morton Schapiro said in a news release Tuesday.

Graham has worked at Northwestern in the Office of General Counsel since 1993, holding a variety of positions in that office. In her new role, she will be responsible for complying with local and federal laws governing institutions of higher education, the release said.

“Stephanie Graham has everything that a major research university would want in a general counsel,” Schapiro said in the release. “She has a deep and broad understanding of the higher education landscape, a firm grasp of the legal and ethical issues that universities face in this era, and the highest level of personal and professional integrity.”

Graham earned a bachelor’s degree in history at the University of Illinois and a law degree at the University of Chicago. Before coming to Northwestern, she practiced law, serving as a litigation associate at Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP in Chicago. Graham also worked at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Illinois Department of Human Rights.

Since coming to the University, Graham has moved up from assistant general counsel to associate general counsel to deputy general counsel, a role she occupied from 2001 until 2016. She became interim general counsel in November 2018 when Philip Harris, who had been vice president and general counsel since 2016, abruptly left the University.

In addition to her administrative roles, Graham taught in the School of Education and Social Policy from 1998 to 2007 and has been an adjunct instructor in SESP since 2013.

“Being a part of the Northwestern community is not just a job for me. It is a true calling and makes the work I do deeply meaningful,” Graham said in the release. “I view our University as a complex client who needs superb support to advance and protect the work it does. I look forward, especially, to stepping into this new role and leading the team of attorneys that I helped build and mentor during my time here.”

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