“I grew up in suburban New York City and was encouraged to go to a New York school,” says Peter Alexander, dean of the SIU School of Law. “I wanted a place that would expand my horizons beyond New York, so I looked into other schools and found SIU.”

What impressed Peter about Southern, and what he says changed his life, was meeting wonderful people. “Midwesterners were friendly and kind, and I quickly realized I wanted the Midwest—and Illinois—to be my home.”

Peter describes his undergraduate experience as “excellent and rigorous, with daily lessons on professionalism,” and the extracurricular life he led to be “transforming.” Peter spent much of his free time in student government and as a member of the Southern Singers student musical organization. He also played many a hand of Euchre, a popular card game at the time. “You can still find a fair number of people who know how to play,” he muses.

After receiving his degree, Peter left to pursue his law degree and a law career. “But I always wanted to come back to Southern,” he says. An opening in the School of Law provided the opportunity he was waiting for. “In all the right ways, I felt like I had never left.”