Celebration of Black Alumni

We are excited to share that we will host the next Celebration of Black Alumni (CBA) in September 2025.

The Celebration of Black Alumni is a self-funded event that provides a unique chance for alumni to return to campus and deepen meaningful connections with peers who share a common bond. This vibrant event, fueled by dedicated volunteers, offers a rich blend of intellectual programming, captivating speakers, social interactions, and a myriad of other engaging activities.

Stay tuned in the coming months for more details and hotel accommodations. We hope to see you at the celebration!

CBA 2025 Co-Chairs

Cari K. Dawson ’93

Partner, Alston & Bird LLP

Cari Dawson is a creative problem solver, legal strategist, and committed advocate. She has practiced for 30 years at Alston & Bird and co-chairs the firm’s Class Action & Multidistrict Litigation Practice Team. From litigation arising out of recalls and data breaches to challenges to clients’ use of artificial intelligence, Cari is regularly retained by corporations to help them think strategically about minimizing liability exposure, winning cases on the merits, and resolving global threats through business-minded settlements. A Chambers-ranked attorney, Cari has served as lead counsel in bet-the-company matters nationwide.

Cari has served on Alston’s Diversity Committee, including as co-chair, and currently co-chairs the firm’s Women of Color Attorney Network. Cari served on the Executive Committee of the National Bar Association’s Commercial Law Section and in 2024 was given the Cora T. Walker Award, which recognizes an NBA member who has a longstanding history of supporting the CLS and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession.

Cari received her A.B. from Princeton University with a degree from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs before entering Harvard Law School in the fall of 1990, where she was active in the HLS Drama Society, worked at the BlackLetter Law Journal, and participated in the Ames Moot Court Competition as the first all-Black team to make it to the finals, the Thurgood Marshall Legacy Team.

Burt M. Fealing ’95

Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, Chief Stainability Officer, and Corporate Secretary, Southwire Company

Burt M. Fealing serves as Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer, Chief Sustainability Officer, and Corporate Secretary for Southwire Company, a global manufacturer with approximately $9 billion of revenue.

Fealing leads the company’s legal, compliance and government affairs functions as well as the Risk Management, Internal Audit and Global Security departments. He is the Chief Compliance Officer and the Chief Sustainability Officer for Southwire.

Fealing serves on numerous nonprofit organizations, including as a Board member for the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education, The Scouts of America, the Georgia Chamber and the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the 2018 Class of Leadership Atlanta, 100 Black Men of Atlanta, and the Rotary Club of Atlanta.

Fealing earned his B.A. (economics and psychology) from Williams College and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. He is admitted in Massachusetts, Georgia and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Dale LeFebvre ’98

Executive Chairman and Founder, 3.5.7.11

Dale LeFebvre, Executive Chairman and Founder of the 3.5.7.11 private equity firm, is a leading investor, inventor, and philanthropist. Since the firm’s founding in 2008, LeFebvre has invested more than $1 billion in institutional capital for businesses specializing in infrastructure and technology.

An avid inventor, LeFebvre personally holds over 50 domestic and international patents.

Philanthropically committed, LeFebvre currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Smithsonian, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and Kennedy Center International Committee.

He was a Founding Milestone Donor of the Smithsonian African American Museum.

LeFebvre holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from MIT, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and a JD from Harvard Law School. He is an Aspen Institute Crown Fellow and a 2024 Horatio Alger Award winner. He serves on the Board of Lincoln Financial (NYSE:LNC).

Deirdre Stanley ’89

Deirdre Stanley is an independent director and a former public company chief legal officer, with over 20 years of C-suite experience spanning the information technology, media and consumer packaged goods sectors. From 2019 through April 2024, she served as EVP and General Counsel of The Estee Lauder Companies, a global manufacturer, marketer and retailer of prestige beauty products. From 2002 through 2019 she was EVP and General Counsel of Thomson Reuters, an information technology company powered by the world’s most global news agency. Recognized as a strategic and transformational general counsel, Deirdre’s experience includes management of regulatory, government affairs, privacy and business development functions. She is a director of Consolidated Edison, Inc. since 2017, where she chairs the management development and compensation committee. She is also a Trustee of the Hospital for Special Surgery and The Dalton School.

Deirdre’s awards and recognitions include the Harvard Law School Association of New York’s 2023 Leadership Award; the Jewish Theological Seminary’s 2022 Rifkin Award; Inside Counsel’s 2011 Transformative Leadership Award and the National Law Journal’s 2009 20 Most Influential General Counsel Award.

Deirdre is an A.B. graduate of Duke University and holds a J.D. degree from Harvard Law School, where she was a member of the Harvard Law Review. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Executive Leadership Council.

Deirdre lives in New York, New York with her husband, Dr. Shaun Massiah, and son.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Harvard Law School invites you to sponsor Celebration of Black Alumni

Your tax-deductible sponsorship will proclaim your support for black leaders in the law, as well as for HLS and will give sponsors visibility (in-person and online) and access to a select group of accomplished alumni and current students with diverse affiliations

Learn More

Volunteer Opportunities

Interested in volunteering? Reach out to us at celebrations@law.harvard.edu. Kindly note that availability is limited.

Alumni Engagement & Outreach
Program Development
Sponsorships & Giving
Visual Arts