Alyssa TerryFreshman ExperienceProfessor AllenFinal Paper12/16/2013Sandra Day O'ConnorThere are many people who have contributed to society as a whole, both men and women. Some contributed much more than others. One of these is Sandra Day O'Connor. I didn't know much about Sandra Day O'Connor until I read her story. He played a very significant role in the story; she was the first woman to be appointed a Supreme Court justice. He showed the country that no matter what your gender, he showed everyone that he had what it took to make it in the world. She was a very successful woman and a great inspiration to women at this time in the world. Obviously women had a difficult time achieving that status as they were considered inferior to men. Her dedication, determination, and the fact that she dramatically changed history is one of the reasons I chose to write my finale about her. “Sandra Day O'Connor was born on August 26, 1930 in El Paso, Texas. Sandra lived the life of an average guy in Texas. She grew up on a farm, working with cattle and working the ranch day in and day out. Her parents Harry and Ida Mae Day were very proud of their daughter, but wanted her to get a better education. This was practically impossible due to the area they lived in, which was very remote. Her parents began to notice that she was a very bright daughter; they saw her reading very well at the age of four. Sandra's parents began researching and founded a school in El Paso. The bad part about El Paso school was that Sandra would have to go live with her grandmother to get the education she needed. He was so bright that he graduated from Austin High School at the age of sixteen. O'Connor feared... mid-paper... that he was moderately conservative (http://www.biography.com). One of the most important cases he had to decide was Mississippi University for Women v. Hogan in 1982 (http://www.notablebiographies.com). This case involved the University of Mississippi denying people access to the nursing program offered there because of gender (http://www.casebriefs.com). This discrimination was said to be against the Fourteenth Amendment which protects all equal rights for a person (http://www.law.cornell.edu). The court ruled in favor of the school rather than Hogan. They determined this because “Petitioner provides no basis for gender-based classifications in its admissions policy” (http://www.casebriefs.com). This was an example of the fact that even though Sandra was a woman, she did not make her decision because of gender. She was very honest when she decided to speak out in favor of the school.