Biography of Alan Page

Alan C. Page is Minnesota’s first African-American Supreme Court Justice. He has established a foundation to provide college tuition for underprivileged students and has co-sponsored a national essay-writing contest to promote literacy. Known for his staunch defense as a member of the famed “Purple People Eaters,” the Minnesota Vikings’ fierce defensive unit of the ‘70s, he was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Page is now an ardent defender of equal education for all children.

Mr. Page’s law career actually began during his NFL-playing days when he had the foresight to attend law school at the University of Minnesota at the height of his football career so he could be prepared for life after football. When he retired from the game in 1981, he went to work for a Minnesota law firm before being appointed special assistant attorney general in Minnesota. In 1987, he became assistant attorney general, and in 1993, he became associate justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court.

In addition to lecturing on a wide range of legal and judicial issues, Alan Page is a compelling speaker on creating education opportunities and mentoring for underprivileged children.

Alan Page earned a BA degree in political science from the University of Notre Dame and a JD degree from the University of Minnesota. He also has received three honorary degrees.

The recipient of numerous athletic and humanitarian awards, Page likes to think of football as a past chapter in his life. “If I could choose a way to be remembered, it wouldn’t be my association with football,” says Page. "Football is the past—a good past, but I’d want to be remembered with children—my children and other children.”

For the 2003-04 academic year, the Page Education Foundation has produced 565 Page Scholars. In addition to helping provide college tuition, the foundation requires its scholars to spend a minimum of four hours per month teaching or tutoring younger students.