Cynthia Baldwin

Cynthia Baldwin (born February 8, 1945) is an American jurist who was a justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after serving sixteen years as a Pennsylvania County Court judge. Baldwin was the first African-American woman elected to the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas and the second African-American woman to serve on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. She retired from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2008. After her retirement from the Court, she became a partner with Duane Morris and served as the first General Counsel for the Pennsylvania State University. As the first general counsel for the Pennsylvania State University she gained some national attention during the Penn State child sex abuse scandal. In 2020, Baldwin was publicly reprimanded by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania for her role in the scandal. Baldwin has been awarded the ATHENA Award, the Heinz History Center History Maker Award and the History Makers Award. She is also the recipient of several honorary doctorates. In recognition of contributions, she is featured on Marquis Who’s Who Lifetime Achievers website. Education Cynthia Baldwin received both her bachelor's degree (in English) and her master’s degree (in American literature) from Penn State. After working as a teacher, English professor and assistant dean of student affairs at Penn State’s Greater Allegheny Campus, she subsequently earned her juris doctor degree from Duquesne University School of Law. At Duquesne she was a member of the law review and is now a board member emerita.