Throughout its history, New York Law School (NYLS) has been home to trailblazing Black alumni who have left indelible marks on the legal profession, New York City government, finance, and public service. This Black History Month, we recognize the groundbreaking achievements of some of NYLS’s most distinguished graduates. Among them are a few father-daughter duos who have made lasting impacts in their communities.
Before pursuing law, NYLS alumnus Le Roy F. Gillead ’64 was a Navigator with the Tuskegee Airmen—America’s first Black military pilots. In February 2025, one of the last surviving Airmen passed away. In honor of their heroic service, NYLS dedicated the Tuskegee Airmen Hero Wall on its campus. View photos from the unveiling and ribbon cutting ceremony.
Moses Leonard Frazier, Class of 1899
Moses Leonard Frazier, Class of 1899, was NYLS’s first Black graduate. Born into slavery in New Orleans in 1860, Frazier overcame tremendous adversity to achieve incredible academic feats. He earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of Mount Union, an LL.B. from NYLS, a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of Political Science, and an LL.D. from the law school of Morris Brown College, where he later served as Dean.
Though the extent of his legal practice wasn’t thoroughly documented, Frazier pursued a wide range of business ventures, including running a real estate firm, a barber shop, and the Academy of Chiropody and Dermatology, where he served as President.
James S. Watson, Class of 1913
James S. Watson, Class of 1913, was one of the first two Black men elected to judgeship in New York City. After graduating from NYLS in 1913, Watson practiced at House, Grossman, Vorhaus & Hemley, and eventually headed the firm’s Department of Corporation and Tax Laws. From 1922 to 1930, he served as Special Assistant Corporation Counsel for the New York City Law Department’s Special Franchise Tax Division.
Justice Watson is remembered as one of the most popular judges in New York City, admired by the legal community and the public alike for his fairness and dedication to public service. After serving 20 years in the Municipal Court, he became President of the Municipal Civil Service Commission. Before accepting the presidency, Justice Watson was considered for higher office and, in 1949, was recommended to President Harry S. Truman for a federal judgeship and to the Department of the Interior to serve as Governor of the Virgin Islands.
Justice Watson was active in various professional associations, including the American Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association, the New York County Lawyers Association, the Harlem Lawyers Association, and the National Bar Association, where he once served as Regional Director.
Barbara M. Watson, Class of 1962
James S. Watson’s eldest child, Barbara M. Watson ’62, was also a trailblazing graduate of NYLS. She was the first woman and first Black Assistant Secretary of State, serving under Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Jimmy Carter.
Upon graduating law school in 1962, Watson worked as an attorney within three New York City government agencies—the Board of Statutory Consolidation, the Law Department, and the New York City Commission to the United Nations, where she served as Director. Watson joined the U.S. State Department in 1966, where she quickly rose to the role of Deputy Administrator to the Bureau of Security and Consular Affairs. In 1968, she was nominated and confirmed as the Bureau’s Assistant Secretary of State, making history. In 1980, President Carter appointed her as the U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia.
In honor of Watson, the State Department renamed the Consular Officer of the Year Award to the Barbara M. Watson Award for Consular Excellence, annually recognizing officers who demonstrate excellence in all aspects of consular work, including leadership in providing the highest-level of services to U.S. citizens and commitment to mentorship.
Marianne Spraggins, Class of 1976
Marianne Spraggins ’76 made history as the first Black woman to serve as a Managing Director on Wall Street. After receiving her J.D. from NYLS and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School, she returned to the School as an Associate Professor of Law and the Director of its Urban Legal Studies Fellowship Program. Throughout the 1990s, Spraggins was an NYLS Trustee and, in 1992, received a distinguished alumni award.
Spraggins’ father, Roy Travers Spraggins ’50, also attended NYLS, enrolling after he had served in the Army in World War II. Following his graduation, the senior Spraggins went on to serve as a research analyst for the State Assembly at Albany and Deputy Controller for the City of New York. He later joined the Surrogate’s Court of New York, where he became the Court’s first Black legal assistant.
Spraggins began her financial career in mortgage finance at Salomon Brothers. In 1990, she became the first Black female Managing Director on Wall Street while in the Municipal Division of Smith Barney Shearson. Around the same time, she was appointed by President Bill Clinton as Director of the Securities Investor Protection Corporation.
Spraggins has held numerous high-profile roles, including Vice President at Prudential Securities, Co-Chair and COO at W.R. Lazard, Senior Managing Director at Smith Whiley & Co., CEO of Atlanta Life Insurance Company Investment Advisors, and Superdelegate for New York in President Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential election. She currently works as Managing Director of Marketing for External Relations at the Bond Factory Company.
More information about these history-makers and many other prominent NYLS alumni can be found in NYLS’s Digital Commons.
Continuing Black History Month celebrations, the NYLS chapter of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) and the Metropolitan Black Bar Association (MBBA) will be hosting a panel on networking and leveraging relationships and opportunities on February 18, 2025. Learn more about the upcoming event.