Shawn A. Fagan
Secretary, Buffalo City Court

A secretary for two Buffalo City Court judges since 1996, Shawn A. Fagan also teaches a legal secretarial course for the Kenmore-Tonawanda School District. When she’s not working at the court or teaching her legal secretarial students, Ms. Fagan spends much of her time volunteering at community organizations, churches and schools.

Ms. Fagan’s primary focus is in two crucial areas—voting and education, both of which tie into this year’s Law Day theme, which centers on the welfare of our society’s children and families. With respect to her voting-related efforts, Ms. Fagan recruits and trains volunteers to operate polling sites in the Buffalo area, working for an organization called "Kids Voting." As an active member of the NAACP, she serves as the local chapter’s Voting Empowerment Chair, and last year developed a successful voter registration campaign that resulted in the registration of more than 1,000 new voters. She is also the NAACP’s local Newsletter Chair, with her chapter’s newsletter placing second at the 1999 NAACP National Conference.

As one who understands the true value of a good education, Shawn is an active member of the Bennett High School Parent Association and serves on the Law Magnet Advisory Board, the Erie County Community College’s Advisory Board and the University at Buffalo’s Urban Education Initiative panel.

Last year, she organized Bennett High School’s Black History program. Additionally, she participates in the school’s "Teacher for a Day" program, sharing her knowledge with the students and stressing how important it is for them to continue with their studies. Ms. Fagan has served on the Buffalo Board of.Education’s Root Cause Analysis Team, researching issues relating to parental involvement in the schools. As a member of the United Way’s Community Building Team, she also studies issues affecting our youth.

We applaud Shawn Fagan for reaching out to the community and making a positive impact in these critical areas. For her obvious love for and dedication to her community, particularly its youth, we are pleased to present her with a 2001 Merit Performance Award for Community Service and Humanitarian Pursuits.