As DePaul College of Law's inaugural Racial Justice Fellow, Nathan Fleming will study and advocate for vulnerable communities in Chicago. He is a doctoral candidate in higher education at the University of Pennsylvania, researching important questions at the intersection of law, race, public policy, and education. His dissertation explores the evolution of mission at Historically Black Law Schools and provides an up-to-date account of the history of African Americans in American law schools.
Fleming, a native of Washington, DC, previously served as shadow U.S. Representative for the District of Columbia, an elected advocate to Congress on issues related to DC statehood and other federal matters. His work was instrumental in the passage of the historic DC Statehood legislation in the House of Representatives in 2020 and 2021. He also served as a legislative and committee director at the DC Council where he authored several pieces of legislation to expand educational, housing, employment, and community equity throughout Washington DC. Fleming taught Appellate Advocacy as an adjunct professor at the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law and was awarded the Yale Entrepreneurship Fellowship in 2013.
He earned his bachelor's degree in Political Science from Morehouse College, his master's degree in Public Policy from Harvard University, and his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley.