Featured Madisonian

Mercedes Alonzo, Alumna

"If you are intelligent, ambitious, and committed to a career in public service, James Madison College is the place for you. JMC professors are among the best in the nation, and are caring people who have mentored and guided students for generations. I am eternally grateful to all my professors, especially Drs. Michael Schechter and Jeanne Barker-Nunn. The former is fondly remembered by legions of former students for his incisive wit and humor, which always made learning fun and entertaining; he also challenged and pushed us to learn beyond any boundaries we might have set up for ourselves. The latter encouraged many budding writers to express ourselves and introspectively engage serious societal issues to which many of our young, sheltered minds had not previously been exposed."

Mercedes Alonzo is a graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Law (J.D.) and an honors graduate of the James Madison College (B.A., International Relations, Cognate in French) and Honors College.

Alonzo serves as Assistant Attorney General with the Consumer Protection Department of the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) in Connecticut. In that capacity, she mediates consumer complaints against companies throughout the country, and conducts related civil investigations. Previously, she worked in the OAG's Environment Department as a litigation attorney and as Assistant Commission Counsel with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities (CHRO). 

She has received the Connecticut Law Tribune's New Leaders of the Law Award in recognition of her exceptional contributions to communities throughout the state. The New Leaders of the Law competition was established to recognize attorneys admitted to the Bar for ten or fewer years "who have made important contributions and who serve as role models" in the legal profession. Alonzo presently serves on the Connecticut Judicial Review Council and on the Connecticut Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations.

Previously, Alonzo served on the Hartford Civilian Police Review Board, and on the boards of directors of:  Hartford Evening Lions Club, Easter Seals of Connecticut, Community Works of Connecticut, and the Connecticut Puerto Rican Forum. She also has volunteered her time and skills to organizations such as the Connecticut Latino & Puerto Rican Affairs Commission, and the West End Civic Association of Hartford.

At various times, Alonzo has been active in numerous professional organizations including the American Bar Association, the International Bar Association, and the Hispanic National Bar Association. She has served as Vice-President and Secretary of the Connecticut Hispanic Bar Association, and Chair of the Special Projects Committee of the Connecticut Bar Association's International Law & World Peace Section.

In addition to her civic activities, Alonzo has volunteered on several political campaigns ranging from the local to the Presidential level. Alonzo's biography appears in Who's Who in American Law. While at James Madison, Alonzo was selected for membership in the Golden Key National Honor Society, Phi Kappa Phi, and Sigma Iota Rho. She also received a Michigan Competitive Scholarship, and an MSU Award for Academic Excellence.