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Karen Burroughs Jones ’74 Distinguished Alumni Award

Celebrating our alumni leaders

The Distinguished Alumni Award was established in 1983 to recognize graduates who have made significant contributions to their professions and/or their communities over an extended period of time, thus reflecting honor upon the College of Charleston. In 2024, the award was re-named in honor of the Alumni Association’s Executive Secretary Emerita, Karen Burroughs Jones ’74, who dedicated more than 30 years in service to our alma mater.

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2025 Distinguished Alumna

Arlinda Locklear ’74

Arlinda F. Locklear has a particularly distinguished career in federal Indian law. During her nearly fifty years of experience in the field, Ms. Locklear has represented tribes throughout the country in federal and state courts on treaty claims to water and land, taxation disputes with states and local authorities, reservation boundary issues and federal recognition of tribes. In particular, she is a nationally‑recognized expert in federal recognition of tribes and Indian land claims.

Ms. Locklear has represented tribes in all levels of federal courts all over the country, including the United States Supreme Court.

Ms. Locklear began her career as an attorney at the Native American Rights Fund in Boulder, Colorado, and later transferred to the Washington D.C. office. She was directing attorney for seven years of the firm’s Washington, DC, office.  In 1987, Ms. Locklear left the firm and continued to represent only Indian tribes since as a solo practitioner.  Over the course of her career, she has received multiple awards, including 2009 Distinguished Alumna Award from the College of Charleston, the 2012 Margaret Brent Award given by the American Bar Association, and the 2015 Lawrence Baca Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Federal Bar Association Indian Law Section.

Ms. Locklear earned her law degree from Duke University School of Law and is a member of the Bars of Maryland, North Carolina, and the District of Columbia.  She also holds honorary doctorates from State University of New York, Oneonta, North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, and the College of Charleston, South Carolina.

Ms. Locklear is an enrolled member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and has two children.