Kent Greenfield, ’92, Profiled in Boston College's The Heights
Greenfield Applies Civil Rights Lens to Corporate Law Research and Practice
After getting pickpocketed in Rio de Janeiro, finding a girlfriend in Ecuador, and watching Bruce Springsteen perform in Argentina, Kent Greenfield decided to attend law school.
Greenfield received his undergraduate degree at Brown University and worked in politics in his early 20s, but he could not decide if he wanted to be a teacher or a lawyer. Following a year of travel in South America, Greenfield said he chose to go to law school instead of pursuing a master’s degree in education.
“I figured if I got a law degree, I could then teach,” Greenfield said. “Going to law school was the choice that opened more doors.”
Reflecting on his decision to go into law, Greenfield said his upbringing had a large influence on him. Greenfield was raised in a small town in Kentucky, where his dad was a minister and his mom was a school teacher. His parents always showed concern and compassion for other people, and Greenfield said he tries to carry these values into his work as a law professor who fights for human rights.
“It’s pretty understandable that I ended up as a teacher that tries to use my efforts in service of something—in service of issues that I care about and justice that I want to pursue,” Greenfield said.
After graduating from the University of Chicago Law School and working as a corporate lawyer for a year, Greenfield became a professor at Boston College Law School, where he has worked for over 27 years.
“I still remember the dean calling me with the offer and being so thrilled,” Greenfield said. “I moved into my office at BC and I’ve been in the same building ever since.”
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