NC Central mourns death of law school dean, who died unexpectedly in Colorado
The North Carolina Central University community is mourning the sudden death of law school dean Browne C. Lewis.
Lewis, an accomplished legal scholar, attorney and author, died unexpectedly Thursday while attending a conference in Colorado with colleagues, NCCU Chancellor Johnson Akinleye announced Friday morning.
The university did not share other details about the cause of death.
Lewis joined NCCU in 2020 and “immediately made an indelible impact” on the school and its diverse and talented future attorneys, Akinleye said.
Under Lewis’ leadership, NCCU earned reaccreditation with the American Bar Associationin November 2020. Enrollment at the school has grown each year, bar passage rates have been above average and students have earned prestigious law internships and fellowships with her at the helm.
‘Extremely passionate about social justice’
Lewis was also key to securing a number of gifts from corporations and foundations, including a $5 million contribution from Intel Corporation that created the NCCU-Intel Tech Law and Policy Center. The center is the first of its kind at an HBCU and the only tech and law policy center that focuses on technology disparities and social justice, according to the university.
Akinleye said Lewis was “extremely passionate about social justice and its intersection with law,” and shared an excerpt of an interview with her that was published by Attorney at Law Magazine in March 2022.
“The key value I want to imprint on the law school is overcoming the impossible through hard work, perseverance, and tenacity. It is important to overcome adversity and realize that you can accomplish any goal even if you do it in bite-sized pieces,” Lewis said.
“I’m one of 12 children from a family in a small country town in Louisiana. I grew up knowing that you have to persevere, overcome adversity, and keep pushing forward,” she said. “Likewise, NCCU School of Law is one of only six HBCU law schools in the country. We’re the underdog pushing forward.”
The university is coordinating a memorial with Lewis’ family to celebrate her life and contributions to NCCU. It will announce more details when it is scheduled.
This story was originally published June 3, 2022 at 12:33 PM.
