George H.W. Bush Lifetime of Leadership Award
Kurt L. Schmoke distinguishes himself in the fields of law, politics, and education. A lacrosse and football star while a history major at Yale, he attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar before receiving his law degree from Harvard in 1976.
After serving as assistant director of President Carter’s White House domestic policy staff, Schmoke returned to his native Baltimore as Assistant United States Attorney and was thereafter elected State’s Attorney, the city’s chief prosecuting officer. In 1987 he was elected mayor of Baltimore. For twelve years, he achieved outstanding successes in urban renewal, neighborhood revitalization, and educational innovation. Schmoke’s programs to improve public housing and to enhance community economic development won widespread praise, and during his tenure Baltimore was one of six American cities to receive an Empowerment
Zone designation by President Clinton, Law ‘73. For his effort in promoting adult literacy, President George H.W. Bush ‘48 awarded Schmoke the National Literacy Award in 1992.Â
After retiring as mayor, Schmoke returned to the private practice of law with an international firm. In 2002 he was appointed dean of the Howard University School of Law.Â
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